


Show Me Your Fallen In Love Face

by unfunny



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pizza Place, Attempt at Humor, First Meetings, Fluff, Friendship, M/M, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, author is absurd, glad that's a tag, too much dialogue, umm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-07-18
Packaged: 2018-07-19 03:19:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 21,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7342555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unfunny/pseuds/unfunny
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Seungkwan likes the regular. Somewhere, Jihoon is sighing. </p>
<p>(or, the AU where Seventeen are uni students on summer break and half of them work in a pizza joint)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Show Me Your Fallen In Love Face

**Author's Note:**

> hoo boy i'm tired of looking at this!! uh, this is a pizza au written by me, your local unemployed fool. please don't hate me for any inaccuracies in my portrayal of the pizza-making industry. also this is very un-beta'd and probably full of errors, so i apologize for that. please enjoy this shenanigan fest (and don't take any of it too seriously)

Seungkwan has a firm belief in the power of girl groups. He’s sure that if he were to die, “Dumb Dumb” would revive him by the first chorus at the latest. That’s why, when what others might call an overplayed, overhyped, or otherwise overrated chart topper starts to trill through the slightly blown speakers of the boombox in the kitchen, Seungkwan will be the last person to change the station. Even when all his coworkers groan and beg for _anything_ else, he’d rather risk his apron and face the sauce Jihoon’s got dripping precariously from a ladle than disrespect the women who give him so much.

He’s really not trying to be dramatic. He’s got to spend his entire freaking summer in this cave of a pizza parlour, and at the least he deserves to listen to something other than Soonyoung’s mouth breathing. Besides, the music makes him work harder, he thinks. Sure, he might get distracted a little trying to perform the choreography while also rolling dough. And yes, there was that one time he was screeching out a high note at the same moment a customer happened to walk in. But employee satisfaction is a necessary cog in the machine that is the capitalistic labor force.

“I don’t think your satisfaction matters at all, actually.” Jihoon inserts, unnecessarily. Seungkwan has half a mind to pitch a fit, but the others have backed off and the music is still on, so he decides not to push his luck.

There are plenty of things Seungkwan could complain about when it comes to his job, but for the most part, he loves his coworkers. Hell, he lives with Seokmin and Soonyoung and hasn’t gotten sick of them yet. Even Jihoon’s grumpiness is refreshing to him, as long as he keeps giving in to Seungkwan's whims like he does. Seungcheol, their floor manager, works with them in the kitchen most of the night and keeps their bickering at a minimum, Chan is still young enough to do what the rest of them say, and it’s always entertaining to see the new and creative ways Jeonghan avoids doing any real work.

Tonight, Jeonghan must be feeling bold, because he’s outright sitting on the make table where Soonyoung and Jihoon are spreading pepperoni slices onto a couple of pizzas. It must be some sort of code violation, but Seungcheol is too busy chopping onions to notice. Sometimes, Seungkwan admires his dedication to idleness. He’s humming along to the song halfheartedly, legs crossed and either picking at or admiring his nails. Jeonghan is one of those people that’s pretty and knows it, which makes him dangerous. Seungkwan would be willing to bet money that even if Seungcheol were to care that Jeonghan is breaking rules, it would only take Jeonghan a tilt of his head and a little eyelash batting to have Seungcheol smiling and shaking his head in that fond way of his, completely forgetting what he was getting onto Jeonghan for in the first place. 

In fact, Seungcheol would probably search the room for _anyone_ else to scold, that’s how whipped he is. And as bitter as Seungkwan could be about this, he’s honestly too charmed by Jeonghan’s dumb hair and maternal grace to even be mad. Anyway, they need someone like him, if only to remind them that this is just a job, not the lifelong prison sentence it can feel like sometimes.

Seungkwan has been making dough for an hour and a half straight now, and he’s dying to do anything else. Right now, Soonyoung is taking the phone orders, shouting them out to the others with his undying enthusiasm. Seokmin is the only one delivering tonight, since it’s Tuesday and there’s not much happening. If he wanted, Seungkwan could talk Seokmin into letting him take the car. They close soon and if he plays his cards right, he can even avoid doing some of the cleaning.

When Seokmin comes back to the kitchen to load up on boxes, Seungkwan leans over the table and clears his throat. “Seokminnie,” he tries, voice pitched high.

“No,” Seungcheol says firmly, before Seungkwan can even begin to offer to take out the trash at the apartment tonight. Seokmin won’t admit it, but Seungkwan knows he loves driving so much because it gives him alone space to sing as loud as he wants. 

“But-” Seungkwan starts, and Seungcheol holds up his hand.

“I know what you’re scheming, Seungkwan. In fact, you can go ahead and start gathering up the dirty dishes.” Seungkwan opens his mouth to whine, but Seungcheol gives him The Look. Under his breath, Jihoon snorts.

Seungkwan makes a show of pouting about it, but he starts moving dishes to the sink, trying to avoid touching the now room temperature sauce that’s beginning to crust over on the plates. The others are finishing up the last pizzas of the night, and this is usually the time of night where they start getting a little silly. Maybe it’s the giddiness of knowing the shift’s almost over or maybe it’s the change in routine or maybe it’s the fact that they’re done dealing with rude customers, it’s just inevitable.

Tonight it starts when Seungkwan dances his way across the kitchen, pumping his chest out in time with the EXO song that’s now playing. He morphs his face into something that’s meant to be sensual, but instead has Soonyoung laughing loudly and Jihoon groaning. He does a little spin with the plates in his hands and Jeonghan whoops from his perch. He kicks his feet out with each step, tossing his head back with all the drama he can muster. Soonyoung’s cheering now and it doesn’t take long for him to join, dressing the pizza below him with a flourish.

Truthfully, hooking Soonyoung always means hooking Seokmin and Jihoon, too. When Soonyoung gets into a little squat and starts wiggling his hips, Jihoon shrieks a laugh, which pulls Seokmin into the kitchen to see what the commotion is. Of course, Seokmin can never resist an opportunity to act foolish, so he starts singing runs as Seungkwan takes over the rap verse. Seungcheol gets into it too, bobbing his head and cackling when Seokmin starts screaming high notes more than singing them. Jeonghan has tears in his eyes when Jihoon makes his famous dolphin-whistle hybrid sound. While the high note battle reaches an insane volume, Chan complains about being the only one still working.

Seungkwan and the others keep playing until the song ends, pulling out a long and admittedly impressive final harmony. After that, though, Seungcheol hands out cleaning supplies and directions and they get to being productive, giggling under their breath the whole time.

By closing, they’re all feeling sore in the feet and drowsy, but they still make an unnecessary fuss saying their goodbyes. “Goodnight, Chan, be careful and text me when you get home safely,” Jeonghan says, cradling Chan’s head to his chest. Chan used to struggle, but these days he’s more resigned to Jeonghan’s coddling.

“I will, mom,” he whines with a roll of his eyes. Jeonghan lets him go and moves in on Seungcheol and Jihoon. He appears to be going for some sort of group hug, but Jihoon hates showing affection and always goes stiff as a board, so it looks more like Seungcheol and Jeonghan are about to kidnap him. 

“ _Ah,_ ” Jihoon squirms in between them and shoots a cutting glare at Seungkwan when he laughs. Soonyoung skips over to them and wraps his arms around the huddle. Jihoon flounders for a second, but the others squeeze him until his face falls and he goes limp. Seokmin is clapping. Chan backs away slowly from the scene, then sprints to his car and makes his escape. When Jihoon’s released, Soonyoung runs, gleeful and a little afraid, shouting “shotgun!” as he passes Seungkwan and Seokmin. 

“See you guys in, like, twelve hours!” Seungkwan hollers, then stalks away to Seokmin’s car. It’s actually pretty rare that Soonyoung remembers to call shotgun before Seungkwan, so he tries not to pout about it too much. They let him have control of the aux cord when he’s in the back, so that’s a plus. 

“How do you guys feel about some AOA?” 

\------ 

When Seungkwan says there’s plenty to complain about when it comes to his job, he means it. His coworkers are great and the work isn’t difficult, but there is a special kind of suffering that only those working in customer service can truly understand. He’s at the front until the lunch rush ends today, and so far, he’s already had to deal with two people demanding discounts and several spills. Usually, he’d delegate one of the others to do the cleaning up, but they’re so busy today that the others are starting to panic in the kitchen. 

So, Seungkwan is on his knees, trying to reach some ice lying under a booth with the dustpan and brush while simultaneously attempting to calm an angry customer. She’s yelling something about a stamp card, insisting that she’s owed one free pizza. This would be reasonable if they had stamp cards, but they never have. Seungkwan thinks she might’ve actually made this at home, because it looks like printer paper from where he’s _still_ trying to reaching that damn ice cube. He’s just going to have to let it melt.

“Ma’am, we don’t have stamp cards here. Perhaps you’re mistaking us for another pizza place?” he suggests as he stands and swipes at the knees of his pants. He has to get the mop before the soda under the booth dries into a sticky dirt magnet, but the customer still wants to argue, apparently.

“Are you implying that I can’t read or something?” she snaps and Seungkwan thinks he really might cry. He’s about to call for Jeonghan or Seungcheol or _anybody_ to save him, but the bell above the door chimes as someone enters the restaurant. Seungkwan and the lady look at each other for a moment. 

“Hello!” Seungkwan nearly shouts at the group of two boys walking into the restaurant. They only nod politely and Seungkwan mourns the conversation that could have been. “You can sit wherever, let me grab you a couple of menus,” he says before casting a look at the lady he hopes will pass for apologetic. He brings the boys their menus and they keep their eyes down for the most part, offering quiet thanks. 

“So, like I was saying, I’m due one free pizza,” the lady starts as soon as Seungkwan turns away from the table. 

“You know what?” he snaps, but quickly rights himself. “Let me go get the manager.” He scurries back into the kitchen and comes out dragging behind him both Seungcheol and a mop. He pushes Seungcheol in the lady’s direction and makes his way to the booth to clean the floor. He does his best to fix his face into a facade of calmness, because now that he can look, the boys he just sat are really good looking. One of them has a pretty face, cat eyes and nice skin. He looks to be around Jeonghan’s age and he holds himself a little more properly than his friend, who’s slouching in his seat. The other has longish hair, parted down the middle in a style that Seungkwan is certain has been outdated for a while now, but he pulls it off. He’s cute in a unique way, with eyes that aren’t quite big but soft, somehow and - and Seungkwan is staring. Yes, Cute Boy just looked at him, Seungkwan is staring.

Seungkwan knows that his face is notoriously easy to read, so he hopes with everything he has that Cute Boy isn’t looking at him anymore as he cringes and mops. Maybe if he shuts his eyes, he’ll be transported far away from this place, where he’s been caught staring at a cute boy and can still hear Seungcheol desperately reasoning with an entitled customer.

Eventually, he has to take the boys’ orders. It’d be pretty obvious if he sent one of the others out to do it, and all of the floor within the mop’s reach has been effectively soaked. He decides he’ll just take his time getting the caution sign.

Seungkwan is rarely nervous about people. He’s actually rather good with people and he likes them a lot, it’s just that he’s very conscious of how he comes off. He wants people to like him and he wants to leave a strong impression, so sometimes he does too much. He’s been called ‘loud’ enough times in his life to know.

When he approaches the table, he smiles politely and asks, “What would you like to order today?” The older looking one looks up at him and orders one large pepperoni with extra cheese and that’s all well and good, but the other guy is just nodding down at the table. If Seungkwan can stand here feeling embarrassed, then the least the guy could do is _look_ at him. “Sure thing!” he says with false cheer and hurries back to put away the mop and shout out the order to the others.

Now that he has a second to breathe, he silently checks up on Seungcheol, who has placated the lady Seungkwan left him with into accepting a ten percent discount. She pays with a bit of an attitude, but seems otherwise satisfied. Seungcheol is really great with people. He doesn’t look like the type, in fact he looks sort of tough and distant, but he’s actually a big softie. Seungkwan thinks he looks like a softie, and he is soft, but sometimes he wishes he were unpredictable or mysterious like Seungcheol. Maybe then dumb guys in his restaurant would look at him.

He hovers around in the kitchen to avoid that tense feeling he gets around customers when he has nothing to offer them. “Looking good, Jihoonie,” he says conversationally, only to get Jihoon to laugh. The guy gets pretty stressed when they’re busy like this, but he’s still quietly keeping everything in order, so Seungkwan isn’t too worried. Sometimes, when things get too fast for Jihoon and he becomes visibly scrambled, Soonyoung will step up to the plate and make sure everyone’s doing what they’re supposed to. Maybe Jihoon’s embarrassed that pizza making can be so frazzling to him, but he’s the kind of person who takes his time to make things perfect. Soonyoung told Seungkwan that Jihoon makes music in his spare time, it’s what he studies at university, and he’s apparently very good. It makes sense that he seems annoyed most of the time at work. Seungkwan wants him to laugh more. He understands being annoyed. 

“There’s a couple of hot guys out there,” he stage-whispers and Jihoon rolls his eyes, but he’s smiling. “I’m gonna get one of their numbers. The other one is too old for me, so you can have him, Jeonghan.” Jeonghan pretends to look scandalized, but Seungkwan is almost serious. He bets Jeonghan would like him.

“Don’t send our customers running for the hills, Seungkwan,” Jihoon says as he pushes a pizza down their makeshift assembly line. Seungkwan presses a hand to his chest in mock-offense. 

“ _Excuse_ me? They would be lucky to know me.” He’s ready to argue more, but Chan is shoving a platter at him and he knows he has to go back out there and face Cute Boy and his friend. “Wish me luck!” He hears Soonyoung shout a quick ‘good luck!’ at him as he leaves the kitchen. 

When he approaches the table, Seungkwan sees the older guy nudge his friend, who looks up at Seungkwan. Or the pizza, Seungkwan doesn’t really know. He just sets the platter down on the little stand and steps back. He asks if there’s anything else they need, and oh dear, Cute Boy is definitely looking at him, but he’s not saying anything. Seungkwan searches the table for any criminal mistakes on his part. The pizza looks correct and Seungcheol has gotten them drinks. There are plastic forks and paper plates on either side of the table. He’s not sure why he’s still standing here. Cute Boy is still staring at him, not thanking him, but not asking for anything else. The other guy clears his throat. 

“Um, okay, let me know-” Seungkwan starts, but he’s cut off. 

“I’m Vernon,” Cute Boy says like he’s just remembered it for the first time in a while. Seungkwan thinks he sees his friend kick at his shin under the table. “Oh - thank you.” Seungkwan opens his mouth and struggles for a second before hastily straining a ‘you’re welcome’ and speed walking away, wondering whether he should beg someone to replace him out there.

Unfortunately, the second he reaches the kitchen, the bell above the front door chimes and he knows he has to go deal with that. He lets out a little groan, but puts on a brave face and does his job. He’s a professional, after all.

Seungkwan does his best to avoid Vernon’s eyes for the rest of the time he’s in the restaurant. It’s not super hard, considering the way Vernon spends his meal glaring at the table, and occasionally his friend. He stops by to refill their drinks once, but is otherwise too busy with other tables. When he’s not serving, he’s stacking up boxes for Seokmin to deliver, and when he’s not doing that, he’s bothering the others in the kitchen. 

“He probably thinks you’re _cuuuuuute_ ,” Soonyoung teases, which is not helping. Seungkwan sputters and denies it because there’s no way, he’s sure of it. Soonyoung just smiles at him, like he’s saying ‘we’ll see’ and Seungkwan isn’t quite sure if he likes what Soonyoung’s implying. 

“Whatever, I have customers,” he says, and it’s not really an excuse. The lunch rush is dying out, but there are always stragglers. He still has a few tables that need their checks and he doesn’t have time for Soonyoung’s shenanigans. Just because his friends want him to flirt with every guy he comes across doesn’t mean Seungkwan can or will or wants to, either. He has standards, first of all, and he can’t just go around subjecting himself to heartbreak for any decent-looking boy that catches his eye. He’s an _adult_.

Seungkwan takes the boys their check and is polite and mannerly and Vernon doesn’t look at him again. The part of Seungkwan that isn’t slightly offended feels validated, like _see, Soonyoung? Nothing cute here_. He serves the final customers of the rush and takes his break in the shaded alley out back with a handful of mozzarella and a coke. It’s still early in the season, so it’s not too hot, and Seungkwan appreciates the momentary silence out here. It’s not often that he feels like having alone time, but it’s nice now and then. 

\-----

Seungkwan has Thursday off, which is both a blessing and a curse. He likes that he gets a break after three full days and before the two he has, but he always manages to waste the days he has off. He’s already slept in a little too late. He likes to think that he’s a hard-working person with a sense of purpose, but summer with a full-time job has left him too worn out to do anything at all if he doesn’t absolutely have to. There’s nothing about his schoolwork that he wants to think about. He has some assigned readings that he’d be wise not to put off, but it feels too early to be considering them. He _could_ go out, but all of his friends are working, as it turns out.

In fact, if Seungkwan thinks about it, his coworkers are his only friends. The ones he’d made at university were surface-level acquaintances at most and he’s been living with Seokmin and Soonyoung since he graduated high school. He doesn’t really feel like he’s missing out on anything, but maybe it would be good for him to make some friends outside of work. Who else is he supposed to hang out with when they’re all working?

Ultimately, Seungkwan decides to listen to music, if only to dance around the apartment while no one’s around to laugh at him. Soonyoung is a dancer and his team has someone making incredible mixes for them to perform to. They’re all upbeat and dynamic, and if he were the running type, Seungkwan thinks he could run to them. He doesn’t run, though, so he performs. He holds a banana in front of his mouth, rapping along, occasionally taking bites, and tries to fire up the pretend crowd he can see if he closes his eyes.

He has to keep the volume down and he can’t be too loud, so he just sort of whispers loudly and hops across his imaginary stage. When the vocals come in, he brings his banana up above his head, miming a high note. He takes a bite. Really, it’d be polite of him to tidy up the apartment a little. He dance-cleans, strutting dishes to the sink and twirling around the trashcan with piles of wrappers in his arms. He’s such a good roommate. Seokmin and Soonyoung are so blessed.

When Seungkwan had first moved in, he was young, insecure, and generally nervous about pleasing them. He had used up all of his savings when he left his hometown, a tiny place with no opportunities, for the city. He couldn’t afford to go back, he still can’t, but now he knows that Soonyoung and Seokmin are the nicest people on planet Earth. They probably wouldn’t kick him out even if he couldn’t pay rent. Still, though, he feels grateful to them and he doesn’t want to let them down. So he even tosses some of their dirty laundry in with his.

When Soonyoung’s CD ends, Seungkwan puts on a playlist of his favorites and tries his best to finish his chores. He doesn’t get around to wiping down the kitchen counters or cleaning whatever exploded in the microwave. He takes frequent snack breaks, so the floors go unvacuumed and he’s really too lazy to wash his sheets. He only manages to fold Seokmin and Soonyoung’s laundry because what’s the point in washing someone’s clothes if you’re just going to let them get wrinkly?

Seungkwan is slouching on the couch, halfway into a Taeyang ballad and swinging one of his freshly-laundered shirts around with his eyes shut when Seokmin and Soonyoung get off work. They immediately join in on the song, and whistle when they see what Seungkwan’s accomplished with his day off. He hopes this means they’ll handle dinner, because he’s honestly beat.

Even though they spend most of their time making pizza, it’s something that they’ve yet to grow tired of eating. It’s probably because they’ve stopped taking the pizza they’re offered for their lunch breaks and opting to walk down the street for a sandwich or something. Seokmin calls in for a delivery from a bigger chain that stays open all night, unlike their restaurant.

They huddle up on their too-small couch with a bad Netflix horror movie and chocolate milks and crack jokes at the main characters’ expense. “Maybe if they stopped making out in this ominous-looking lake house…” Seokmin laughs.

“He dies in the end, let her enjoy him while he’s alive!” Soonyoung says.

Seokmin looks aghast. “Why would you tell me that?” Soonyoung just smiles because he’s just that kind of person and they all know it. He can’t keep anything to himself, especially when he’s excited. It’s actually a rule of the house that Soonyoung can’t watch movies before Seokmin and Seungkwan do, but clearly he’s broken it.

They eventually stop paying attention to the movie because it’s really bad and they already know how it ends, anyway. “How was work?” Seungkwan asks while the main girl’s best friend is being chased through the woods.

“It was good. Someone ordered a pizza without cheese or sauce, so that was interesting,” Seokmin answers around a mouthful of popcorn.

“Any toppings?”

“Sausage, actually.”

“That sounds nasty.”

“It was.” 

They pass the popcorn down the couch in a practiced rhythm, sometimes talking and sometimes not. Seungkwan feels really glad to have the friends he has.

\-----

Forget every nice thing Seungkwan has ever thought or said about Soonyoung and Seokmin. They’re the worst people he knows. Actually, throw in everyone he works with while he’s at it. He’s divorcing all of them. This is so unfair.

Seungkwan just wanted to have a good Friday. He has to work, so it’s already marginally worse than Fridays should be and they’re busy as hell so Seungkwan would say this Friday has given all other Fridays a head start on being better Fridays.

He was minding his own business, making dough as fast as he could because Seokmin was out delivering and they’ve got to keep up with the orders that keep rolling in. He was laser-focused for once in his life, nodding along to the Big Bang song that’s currently helping him keep his head, when Soonyoung laughed bright and loud into the phone he’s been taking orders from. As soon as Seokmin entered the restaurant, Soonyoung shouted for him.

“You have to let Seungkwan take this one,” He’s smiling and Seungkwan absolutely does not trust him. “Two large pepperonis, half bacon, for one Vernon Chwe.” He glances to Seungkwan to watch his reaction. “He requested,” he pauses to giggle, “the one with the _cheeks_.”

Seungkwan is shaking his head and now everyone is laughing, congratulating Seungkwan and he’s sort of mortified. First of all, his cheeks are a bit of a sore subject and they’re being used against him. Second, what does Vernon want? More awkward almost-conversation? To embarrass Seungkwan? He’s already halfway there, if that’s his goal.

Seokmin is shoving the car keys into Seungkwan’s hands, dragging him away from his station and removing his apron for him. Does he think he’s helping? Seungkwan is still shaking his head because this is just _ridiculous_. Is this what it feels like to be on Punk’d?

“Is this a prank?” Seungkwan mutters. Soonyoung looks so pleased with himself.

“I _knew_ it! Wow, I’m amazing.” He’s glowing with pride and Seungkwan resists the urge to swing at him. He must be glaring though, because Jihoon looks back at him and cackles. They’re really churning out these pizzas. They’re really making him do this. 

“This must be a prank,” he decides. He tries not to drop the pizzas when they’re finally handed to him by a smirking Chan. Jeonghan comes over to fix his hair and Seokmin is grinning like a proud father. Seungkwan wants to drop kick him.

“Be nice, smile pretty, and drive carefully,” Jeonghan says. Soonyoung gives him two thumbs up and has the audacity to laugh when he pulls a face. Seungkwan passes Seungcheol, who is waiting tables, on his way out. He looks at Seungkwan questioningly, because he’s not supposed to be delivering tonight, but doesn’t stop him. It’s one of the few times Seungkwan ever wishes Seungcheol was stricter.

The apartment complex he’s been given the address to isn’t very far at all and Seungkwan considers circling the block a few times. He won’t though, because he’s strong and capable and he can do this. Even if this is some ploy to make fun of Seungkwan and humiliate him, he’d rather suck it up and face it than avoid it. And some small part of him is still hoping against all odds that that isn’t what this is. But he tells that part to zip it.

He finds the apartment with relative ease, and it sounds like there are a lot of people inside when he’s standing in front of it. He takes a deep breath, steels himself, and knocks. First, there’s silence. Then, a scuffle. Some harsh whispers. A grunt, a thud. The door is yanked open, and there’s Vernon, flushed and wide-eyed in a flannel and jeans. His mouth is open slightly, like he was ready to say something but forgot it. Seungkwan’s eyes shift to the pizzas in his arms.

“Here-”

“That was my friend,” Vernon interrupts (for the second time, Seungkwan notes) with urgency. “Um,” he starts again, “that was my friend. That sent the request. I’m sorry.” He opens the door wider and gestures to a boy that’s hunched over with a careful hand on his stomach. Seungkwan waves timidly. The boy nods and Vernon pulls the door back. “He thought it would be funny or something, I don’t know,” Vernon’s eyes are glued to the floor now, and he only glances up when Seungkwan scoffs.

“Why would it be funny?” He’s not sure if he’s offended or just confused, but Vernon is stuttering over his words like he’s just insulted the queen or something and now Seungkwan thinks it’s funny, too. “You know, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“I’m sorry,” Vernon says again. “You were probably really busy or whatever…” he trails off.

“Oh, not really,” Seungkwan lies. Vernon’s kind of cute when he’s flustered. “Um, here are your pizzas,” he suddenly remembers. Vernon startles like he’d forgotten too and grabs the pizzas, thanking Seungkwan too many times and paying him.

He turns to leave, since it’d be pushing his limits to stand here any longer. “Wait,” Vernon says when Seungkwan moves. “What’s your name? I-if you don’t mind, that is.”

“I’m Seungkwan.”

Vernon smiles. “I’m Vernon.”

“I know.”

“Oh, duh,” Vernon blushes, which is really endearing. Seungkwan waves because if he doesn’t go now, he’s going to embarrass himself somehow, he’s sure of it.

“See you, Vernon.”

“Yeah,” he says, “see you.” As Seungkwan turns the corner at the end of the hallway, he swears he can hear Vernon’s friends shouting and laughing and then, the door shutting.

\-----

Seungkwan is a truly sensitive person. He thinks it’s a strength of his, most of the time. It makes him better at reading people and better at pleasing them. He’s always conscious of the moods around him, and he’s a good friend because of it. There is a part of him that hates his sensitivity, too. He hates that he cries easily and he hates that people probably see him as weak. He knows that his emotions are usually written clearly across his face and people want to protect him as a result.

Seungkwan would also describe himself as theatrical. Since he’s got big eyes and chubby cheeks and people are scared of seeing him cry, they tend to buy into whatever he’s selling - whatever cravings or whims or desires. When he walks into the kitchen swinging the keys, empty pizza bag over one shoulder, he knows everyone’s looking at him. He knows they’re waiting for him to tell them how he’s feeling. They’re waiting for him to tell them how they should feel, in a way.

It’s quiet except for the sound of Chan folding boxes. Seungkwan drops the keys on the make table and they land with a disruptive clatter. “ _You bitches_ ,” he begins, then pauses. It’s for effect. “Are lucky.”

There’s a collective sigh of relief from everyone in the kitchen, whether they’ll admit they were relieved or not. None of them actually wanted Seungkwan to be upset, and they’d be crushed if the Vernon guy was a real asshole, so they feel like they’re safe for now. Sure, Seungkwan will be a little prickly about being forced into an uncomfortable situation, but he’s probably better for it. Exposure and all that. They’re like his therapists.

“So?” Soonyoung urges impatiently, but Seungkwan isn’t going to give in just like that. He turns his head to the side, accentuating his _good angle_ , he knows.

“A gentleman doesn’t kiss and tell.” Seungkwan beams at the ruckus that breaks out.

“Oh, bullshit!” Jihoon hollers, which would be hurtful if he wasn’t right. They’re all more or less in on the joke, because Seungkwan is way too prideful to kiss on the first date, much less on the first pizza delivery. He’s the romantic type, wants to be wined and dined and pined after. The whole nine. They know this. It’s why he’s never been on a second date in the year that he’s lived here.

Maybe Chan’s not in on the joke. He’s a little new. He’s chuckling along in the way that people who don’t want to ask for an explanation do. But he’s getting there. Seungkwan isn’t upset, and that’s what gives him levity in his young life. That, and sneaking fistfuls of mozzarella when he thinks Seungcheol isn’t looking. Which is rarely the case, but no one’s about to rain on his parade.

Jeonghan high fives Seungkwan and tells him he’s proud of him just for putting himself out there. It’s mostly true, he is proud. But Jeonghan is a secretly wise person, and he can tell that something good happened with Vernon. Seungkwan is still giggly but trying to compose himself. He’s so obvious sometimes that Jeonghan aches for him. Everyone, in fact, seems to have caught on to the fact that Seungkwan is almost unbearably giddy about the whole event, though he thinks he’s being sly.

“Are you gonna tell us what happened or what?” Seungcheol finally bites, because they can count on him for that kind of thing. Everyone nods and nudges at Seungkwan when he goes coy. 

“Nothing happened!” he squeaks. “Well. I mean. He said his friend was the one who sent the request.”

“The one he was here with?” Seungcheol asks.

“Uh, no, some other guy-” Jeonghan gasps.

“Do you know what this means?” he says like it means something super important, and Seungkwan is clueless. “It means he _talked about you_. To his _friends_!” Everyone hums in agreement. Seungkwan isn’t sure what to do with that really, because he talked about Vernon to his friends. He tells his friends almost everything.

“That might mean he’s interested!” Soonyoung shouts as if Seungkwan’s being dense. Maybe he is. “Especially if his friends wanted him to see you again.”

Well, Seungkwan can admit that’s pretty cute. It’s definitely not enough to go diving after him for, but he wouldn’t mind seeing Vernon again. As long as his friends keep a reasonable distance, that is. They have a habit of humiliating him. Like, this one time, they gave him a table of customers that only spoke Italian and told them he was fluent. He’d just sort of nodded along while they howled from their hiding places. Or another time, they pushed him into a dance battle on the street. They also generally enjoy goading him into Seungkwan-type things in public, like freestyle rapping, model walking, or impressions. He wouldn’t say he’s particularly _great_ at any of those things, but he can’t resist. He likes making them laugh.

\-----

The next time Seungkwan sees Vernon is so similar to the first that it makes his skin crawl. It’s the middle of the week as a rush is dying out that he walks in, led by two guys Seungkwan’s never seen before. One of them has the face of a prince, angular and symmetrical and the other has a shock of rainbow hair falling over his forehead in waves. They’re talking to each other in quick Mandarin while Vernon trails behind with his hands shoved in his jeans pockets.

Seungkwan is collecting menus from another table, but he watches as Seungcheol seats them in Seungkwan’s section, which just looks weird because now the half of the restaurant that Soonyoung is serving is empty while Seungkwan’s still got two other tables. He’d be more surprised if Seungcheol _wasn’t_ scheming, so it’s fine, but he’s going to have to talk to his coworkers about respecting subtlety.

“Hey, Seungcheol gave me another table,” he says to Soonyoung in the safety of the kitchen where Soonyoung is scribbling down a phone order, “but you can take it if you want.” He’s aiming for casual nonchalance, but it must be bad because Soonyoung turns to him with a knowing look.

“Why’d he do that?” he asks. When Seungkwan sighs, he grins. “What is it?” He makes a break for it, and Seungkwan’s too slow to stop him.

“Soonyoung, don’t be embarrassing!” he whisper-yells, but Soonyoung is already skipping giddily over to their table.

“Wow!” he shouts, smiling wide and leaning a little too far into the group’s space. The guy with the rainbow hair is sort of nodding and smiling back, the pretty guy looks confused, and Vernon’s pulling a face. “Do you dance? I recognize your hair!” Soonyoung points rather rudely at the guy, whose eyes are wide when he glances to Vernon for help.

“They both dance, actually,” Vernon says calmly, gesturing at both the boys.

“Oh!” Rainbow Hair says, “We go to the studio on 45th. Have you seen us at competition?”

“Definitely! You guys did a sick piece last year that everyone at our studio loved!” The boys duck their heads in polite modesty, blushing. “In fact! Hold on-” Soonyoung jogs away toward the kitchen, leaving Seungkwan standing there alone in silence for a second. He’s about to apologize for Soonyoung’s intensity when he returns, dragging behind him a flour-y Chan.

“No way!” Chan says when he sees them, quickly righting himself into a bow which the boys return in embarrassed earnest. “You guys are so cool, what are you doing here?” Seungkwan swears he hears Vernon laughing under his breath.

“We’re just here for lunch. Actually, we live pretty close by,” the pretty one says. “Are you the one who danced to a Michael Jackson remix last season?” Chan beams and nods. “Who does your music?”

”Do you know Min Yoongi?” Soonyoung starts, and Seungkwan can sense that this conversation is getting into territory he’s not necessarily needed for. Chan and Soonyoung look about ready to pull up chairs and call it quits for the day, and Vernon’s friends are just as invested. Seungkwan glances over at Vernon, whose eyes are starting to glaze over as they bore holes into the wall across from him.

“Psst. Hey.” Seungkwan points a thumb over his shoulder when he catches Vernon’s attention. “You wanna eat?” he stage-whispers, and laughs when Vernon nods with fervor. “I’m taking my break, Seungcheol, tell the boys to hit us up with a pepperoni in the alley,” he hollers into the kitchen and leads Vernon out to the curb to sit.

“Small world,” Vernon says after clearing his throat.

“Hm? Oh, yeah. Sorry Soonyoung stole your friends away from you. He tends to do that.”

“Oh, no. Dance people. We have to deal with it a lot. They’re like celebrities,” he replies, waving his hand.

The sound of the door opening startles them both, and they turn to see Jihoon smirking down at them with an unfolded pizza box in his hands. “Your pepperoni, your highness.” He rolls his eyes when Seungkwan scoffs. “Don’t take too long.”

“Sir, yes, sir!” Seungkwan salutes at Jihoon’s back. “Take your pick,” he holds the box out to Vernon. “So, who’s we?”

“Huh?” Vernon asks around a mouthful of pizza.

“You said ‘we have to deal with it a lot’.”

“Oh, well. We live together. Actually-” he pauses to swallow his food, “that guy I came in with last week? His name’s Joshua. I live with him and those two guys in there, Jun and Minghao, live next door with their two roommates. We’re all… close,” he says this like he regrets it a little. “Minghao’s the one with the hair,” he adds.

“Well, I live with Soonyoung and another guy who works here. Seokmin, maybe you’ve seen him? He delivers a lot.”

Vernon grimaces. “Yeah, uh,” he blushes down at his knees, “he actually always delivers to us. Um. That’s why, you know, my friend, Mingyu. He’s the one who requested you. Since, uh, we always got Seokmin. Not that he’s not great! It’s just, you know…” he trails off after that, like he forgot where he was going.

“It’s just?” Seungkwan tries, because although it’s really quite endearing to watch Vernon struggle, he also really wants to know.

“No, it’s nothing. Just, well. Joshua told the guys that I introduced myself to you because, you know, it was a nice, embarrassing story, and they had never seen you before. It’s dumb. My friends are dumb.” He finishes by shoving the rest of his pizza slice into his mouth, eyeing the pavement. Seungkwan doesn’t want to laugh at him, so he holds his mouth firmly shut and listens to Vernon breathing through his nose, as his mouth is full of pizza.

“I know a thing or two about embarrassing stories,” Seungkwan says while Vernon nods to himself, cheeks puffed out. “One time, my friends made me go on a date with a girl who had a crush on Seungcheol.” Vernon still can’t speak, but he finally looks up at Seungkwan with furrowed brows. “Um, they told her I _was_ Seungcheol. Sprayed black hair dye in my hair and put me in his clothes and everything.” Now Vernon’s laughing through his nose, covering his mouth. “They just… sat there. In the restaurant. Listening to me try to convince this poor girl that I was Seungcheol.” Vernon chokes a little on his pizza before eventually forcing it down his throat and laughing out loud.

Seungkwan is laughing, too, because it’s really funny remembering the way he looked that day, with Seungcheol’s too-big cardigan hanging over his knuckles as he _insisted_ in his best Seungcheol impression that he was exactly who she was trying to date. Also, Vernon’s got some pizza sauce around the corners of his mouth and it’s taking everything in Seungkwan not to reach over and wipe it off. That would be inappropriate. “She wasn’t fooled, obviously. She saw Seungcheol and the others hiding out in their booth and threw her drink on all of them. So, it was pretty fun for all of us.” Seungkwan is sort of relishing in how hard Vernon’s laughing at this story. He’d be willing to embarrass himself further if this is the result.

“That’s incredible,” Vernon says after a minute. “Your friends might be more humiliating than mine.” Seungkwan just smiles. Vernon has no idea, really. But he’s not about to scare him off with any more stories just yet.

They spend the rest of Seungkwan’s lunch break eating and talking and Seungkwan learns that Vernon is a generally cool and chill person, which makes him feel kinda spastic in comparison. Sure, he’s a little awkward, but he’s confident in himself in a way Seungkwan can only hope he emulates. He talks about the music he loves and when Seungkwan feels himself getting charmed by the way his face lights up, alarms go off in his head.

He _cannot_ be attracted to Vernon. This is their first real conversation. It’s… wrong. Or something. Besides, Vernon isn’t interested. Those are just ideas Soonyoung’s put in his head. They’re just friends. Seungkwan wants to be friends with Vernon. Vernon is really nice and funny. _Of course_ he wants to be friends with him. He’s a huge rap fan and Seungkwan knows plenty about that. He can carry any rap verse in any Big Bang song ever composed. They have a lot in common, alright?

Inside, Soonyoung and Chan are finishing up a pizza with Jun and Minghao, which Seungcheol is graciously ignoring. “We gotta come here more often, man!” Minghao shouts at Vernon when they make their way back to the table. Soonyoung cheers. Seungkwan’s surprised Jihoon hasn’t yanked him back into the kitchen by his ears yet. Then again, there isn’t really much going on. Seungcheol is just wiping down some tables in that slow way that Seungkwan knows he uses to keep from doing the harder work in the kitchen. There are no customers other than Jun and Minghao, and they don’t really count anymore.

Vernon sits back down with his friends and Seungkwan goes to throw away their empty pizza box and check on everyone else. In the kitchen, Jeonghan, Seokmin, and Jihoon are singing along lowly to an old Shinee song while fiddling with ingredients. Seungkwan joins in before they see him, but they’re not surprised. This is sort of their thing. Actually, they’re pretty good. Their voices blend really well without clashing. Even Jihoon thinks they sound nice, and he should know.

“How was your little lunch date?” Jihoon asks when the song’s over and the radio’s been turned back down.

“It wasn’t a _date_ ,” Seungkwan whines, “but fine.”

Seokmin coos. “Looks like they’re becoming regulars.”

Seungkwan nods. “Looks like it.”

“I guess you could say he’s coming back for you.”

Seungkwan scoffs and crosses his arms. “Or you could _not_.”

Jeonghan goes in to pinch at Seungkwan’s cheeks, but he dodges. “Don’t be a bad sport,” Jeonghan snaps and traps Seungkwan’s face between his hands. “Whose cutie are you?”

So, all in all, it’s equally entirely too similar to the first time Seungkwan saw Vernon and amazingly different from it.

\-----

After that, there’s some silent agreement among Seungkwan’s coworkers to send only Seungkwan on deliveries to or near Vernon’s apartment. Even Seungcheol’s in on it, Seungkwan can tell because he gets a dumb smile on his face when Vernon calls and smacks Seungkwan on the back like he’s his dad or something. It’s embarrassing. They’ve all rallied around this idea that maybe if Vernon sees Seungkwan enough, he’ll fall in love with him.

Seungkwan isn’t an idiot. Sure, he and Vernon have a good laugh every time they find each other on the other side of a door, but this isn’t a _romantic comedy_. This is Seungkwan’s job. He can’t stand there for much longer than it takes to say hello to Vernon and sometimes Joshua or Jun or Minghao.

Well, and Vernon’s other two neighbors, Mingyu and Wonwoo, that he introduced him to one night. They’re really nice. Wonwoo looked a little scary at first, but he actually tells a lot of puns so Seungkwan likes him. And Mingyu’s a loveable person in general, really caring and whatnot. Even asks about Seungkwan’s mother when he sees him. So Seungkwan does his best to tell everyone hello when they’re around. It’s only polite.

And there are nights when Vernon invites him in, but it’s usually just to grab him a water bottle or maybe a snack, so it just takes a second. And only sometimes, Seungkwan will take a quick seat. It’s a lot of work carrying all those pizzas up the stairs. Well, he usually takes the elevator. But, still. He deserves a break now and then. And if he and Vernon play a short little game of Mario Kart or show each other a few new songs they like, it’s fine. Seungkwan doesn’t have any illusions about what any of that means. They’re just friends who only have a few precious minutes every week to catch up, they should take advantage of it.

Although, Seungkwan is a little confused why Vernon doesn’t just ask for his number. He always has at least a day or two off during the week, they could hang out then. It’s not like friends don’t have each others numbers. He knows, he has everyone else’s numbers. In fact, he has a running group message with Jun, Minghao, Mingyu, Wonwoo, Joshua, Soonyoung, and Chan. It’s the most annoying part of his life right now, but dammit if he doesn’t take part in it.

It’s mostly the dancers dominating the conversation with their competition talk, Wonwoo and Joshua nerding out over books, and Mingyu sending outdated memes. Why _wouldn’t_ Vernon want to be involved?

Whatever. Seungkwan isn’t going to worry about it because it’s not really his business. What he needs to do is focus on getting through this summer with as much money as it’ll take him to make it through next semester, when he can only manage working part-time. That, and keeping his friends away from his feelings about Vernon. Which he’s still trying really hard not to have.

He doesn’t think he’s really to blame for those, either. Vernon is a Confirmed Hot Person, and as if that wasn’t bad enough, he’s got a great personality on top of it. In the time that Seungkwan has spent observing Vernon, he’s noticed a lot of things about him that are surprising. For example, Vernon’s almost always making a face, whether he means to or not. His face is expressive and open, and it makes him someone Seungkwan wants to trust.

He’s also got a sweet tooth a mile wide, but he tries to be secretive about it. He keeps mini Twix bars in his pockets and sneaks them when he thinks he can get away with it, and there’s no way in hell Seungkwan is going to stop him. Besides, Vernon will sometimes slip Seungkwan a handful for the road. He’s thoughtful like that. He knows Seungkwan likes his water room temperature because it’s better for his throat, knows which albums Seungkwan should listen to, knows Seungkwan’s work schedule (though Seungkwan isn’t sure _how_ ).

They make a good team and Seungkwan doesn’t want his friends coming in and wrecking it. Sure, he’d like for everyone to be friends, but they can’t go running their mouths about Seungkwan’s dumb crush. He’s tried to keep it himself, he really has, but some nights he gets back from a delivery and just _knows_ he looks dumbstruck and it’s painfully obvious. Even Jihoon has stopped teasing Seungkwan about Vernon as much.

They all, however, continue to shove Seungkwan in Vernon’s general direction any time they’re able.

Like tonight. Soonyoung has talked Vernon into finally bringing everyone to the restaurant near closing time so they can all get acquainted. Seungkwan’s cleaning as fast as he can, scrubbing at the make table with the trusty old sponge in the hopes that he’ll have a minute to make himself presentable before everyone shows up. Jihoon and Soonyoung are cleaning the floors, Seungcheol’s putting away ingredients and delegating work, Chan and Seokmin are wiping down all the tables with cleaner, and Jeonghan is scrambling around with whatever busy work Seungcheol can find for him. Everyone’s a little excited.

Despite the group message, Chan and Soonyoung have never actually _met_ Mingyu, Wonwoo, or Joshua, and they’re buzzing with anticipation. Really, Seungkwan is, too. Something tells him that they’re all going to get along really well, like their groups were destined to merge. Seungkwan feels a little proud being indirectly responsible for it.

“Seungkwan, counters?” Seungcheol shouts at two minutes to closing.

“Clean!” Seungkwan shouts back, shooting the sponge across the kitchen to the sink, pumping his fist when it doesn’t fall in. Small victories.

“Floors?”

“Swept!” Soonyoung and Jihoon’s voices yell in unison.

Seungcheol makes his way out of the kitchen. “Tables?”

“Spotless!” Seokmin grins as he winks at his reflection on the last of his tables.

“Uh, ditto!” Chan says from across the room, scraping off the last remnants of some crusted-over pizza sauce with his thumbnail.

“Jeonghan?” Seungcheol says, voice less confident and demanding, more hesitant and careful.

“Yep!” Jeonghan’s voice echoes into the dining area from wherever he is in the back room.

Seungcheol hums to himself for a moment, considering his options. Then, he shrugs. “Whatever. Start putting up chairs, guys!”

Usually they make a game of this. There are eighty-four chairs total in the dining area of Pepe’s Pizza. Seokmin and Seungkwan had counted (loudly) one night while competing to see who could put them on the tables faster. It was fun until Seungcheol had come out and shown them how it’s really done. It’s become something of a tradition, this sport of speed and sabotage.

Six of them spread out across the area, chair backs in hand, and Jeonghan times them. The goal is to put up your fourteen chairs as fast as you can while counting out loud. It’s simple in theory, but the spirit of competition drives them to betray each other in these sacred hours.

“Ready,” Jeonghan starts, finger poised over the start button, “set,” they steady themselves. “Go!” All hell breaks loose.

Each boy is shouting a number, flipping chairs as fast as they’re able. Seungcheol’s already made a considerable dent in his section. Seungkwan is still trying not to sweat. Soonyoung is halfway through his second table. Jihoon’s eyes are darting around him as he works smoothly. Seungkwan doesn’t trust him, and for good reason.

Seungcheol, ever reliable, finishes his fair share first, shouting “fourteen!” and stepping over to Jeonghan’s side. This is nothing new. Soonyoung is almost done, he’s shouting twelve, thirteen, and Jihoon’s closing in on his territory. Seungkwan knows what’s coming next.

Jihoon lunges as Soonyoung’s flipping his final chair. He rips two off of the opposite end of Soonyoung’s section in quick succession. Soonyoung’s face falls at the treachery. Before Soonyoung can react, Jihoon is back to his own chairs, moving at lightning speed and counting “thirteen, fourteen!” while Jeonghan squeals.

Seungkwan’s arms are getting tired. He knows Seokmin’s are, too. They’re slowing down a bit, watching the show and whatnot. Seokmin’s on eleven and Seungkwan’s on ten. If he just takes a few steps forward, he could unravel everything Seokmin’s been working for. Jihoon just took second place. There are no rules here. There are no allegiances. He’s totally gonna do it.

Seungkwan quickly maneuvers to the table Seokmin is furthest from while Chan, who has been working steadily and humbly, finishes just a second after a pouty Soonyoung. He takes advantage of Seokmin’s brief distraction and quietly pulls chair after chair from their places. He’s caught, though, when Seungcheol points and laughs. Seungkwan scurries back to his section when Seokmin shrieks.

“Thirteen, fourteen! Fourteen, suck it! I’m not in last!” Seungkwan shouts. He’s jumping around like he just won the lottery, then bowing and waving his pageant queen wave at the others who are covering their mouths. Seungkwan settles. There’s silence.

“Not in last, huh? Congrats, man,” he hears Vernon say.

Seungkwan gives himself a moment. He doesn’t want to look at his friends, who are holding back what will soon be uproarious laughter, so he shuts his eyes. Then, he turns slowly on his heels. When he opens his eyes, he first sees Seokmin, red faced and biting his lip, tiptoeing around with his last chair. He scans the floor to a group of sneakers, frozen. He takes a breath. “Let’s hear it for Seokmin everyone, coming in at - how many seconds, Jeonghan?”

The stopwatch beeps. “Fifty-eight seconds.”

Seungkwan claps slow, sighing a breath of relief when everyone else joins in. Even Vernon’s friends are cheering, despite their confusion. Seungkwan encourages it for as long as it takes for Jihoon and Seungcheol to stop laughing at his misfortune.

\-----

Just as Seungkwan suspected, everyone gets along just fine. They all congregate in the parking lot, where they introduce themselves and hang out for a while. Vernon and Seungkwan are standing off to the side, watching the magic unfold. “Looks like Joshua’s getting along nicely with Jeonghan,” Seungkwan comments. Of course he is. Everyone does. Right as he says this, Jeonghan flips his hair and laughs. Seungkwan can almost see the hearts in Joshua’s eyes from here.

“Oh yeah. Jeonghan? That one is…” he pauses, “a weapon.” Vernon smiles, though, when Joshua laughs loudly at what Seungkwan bets wasn’t a very funny joke.

“He’s something.” Seungkwan says, because he’s not sure there’s anything more constructive he could say to sum Jeonghan up. “Is Wonwoo okay?” Soonyoung has been making his rounds and seems to have settled on shoving Seokmin in between his new best friends Mingyu and Wonwoo, who look a little uncomfortable but mostly amused. Mingyu’s the type of person to go along with anything, so Seungkwan isn't too worried about him.

“He’s fine, probably just thinking of a terrible joke or something.” Seungcheol and Jihoon were leaning up against Jeonghan’s SUV with their arms crossed, looking rather mean and unapproachable, but Jun has been telling them some story animatedly for a minute or two now, and they’re watching with what can only be called curious awe. Jun’s sort of weird. Vernon once told Seungkwan that he eats lemons. “You know,” Vernon says, “I’m a little scared of Jihoon.”

“You know,” Seungkwan says, “me too.” Jun’s eyes are wide and he’s gesturing broadly. Seungcheol is squinting at him like he’s confused.

“He’s reacting well to Jun, though,” Vernon observes.

“Well, Lee Jihoon has several soft spots.”

“Oh, really?”

“Not for me, but, you know. For Seungcheol, and Soonyoung,” Jun laughs and smacks Jihoon on the arm in his reverie. Jihoon doesn’t even hit him back. Seungkwan throws his arms up and scoffs. “And I guess for Jun, too.”

“You sound bitter.”

“I was here first,” Seungkwan whines. Vernon just smiles at him.

“Well, everyone else has a soft spot for you. Jihoon is just… immune. To the Boo Seungkwan charm.” Seungkwan can feel himself turning red, so he pushes Vernon away and rolls his eyes, but they’re both grinning. How corny.

Chan and Minghao are just floating around together, probably talking shit. It’s hard to tell by looking at them, since they’re both really cute, but they’re actually frightening. Chan says things sometimes that cut Seungkwan to his core, not that he ever means to. And Vernon said that Minghao gets really mean when he’s tired, so Seungkwan wants to stay on his good side. Chan’s the first of the night to leave, given that he’s still a minor with a curfew and concerned parents to appease and all.

After that, people start clearing out, exchanging numbers and making plans. Seungkwan watches like a proud mother, or supreme overlord. Maybe like a king. And his friends are his happy, loyal subjects. Something like that. Vernon has to leave with Joshua, who is lingering around Jeonghan for as long as he’s allowed to, it seems, so they’re some of the last to leave. Seungkwan has no complaints. In fact, he’s gonna make a move.

“Vernon, do you wanna be added to our group chat? Like, everyone’s in it.” Vernon looks like he hadn’t known this, and nods. “Uh, what’s your number?” So it’s not a _huge_ move, but he has Vernon’s number now. It’s a good night.

When Joshua finally finds it within himself to leave Jeonghan, Vernon and Seungkwan draw out their goodbyes through the car’s passenger window. “We should get everyone together again,” Seungkwan says, resting his face in his hands, elbows in the window. Vernon isn’t leaning away, but Joshua _is_ sitting in the driver’s seat like a chaperone. Seungkwan’s trying to ignore it.

“Yeah, definitely,” Vernon says, nodding. “We could, uh, have a movie night at our place?” He glances back at Joshua, who shrugs. “I’ll text you.”

“Okay,” Seungkwan says and steps back. “I’ll see you later, Vernonie.” Joshua backs out of his parking spot and Vernon holds a peace sign out his window until they’re on the street.

“Vernonie?” Seokmin says as he kicks at the back of Seungkwan’s knee. Seungkwan turns around and goes for his throat.

\-----

As a general rule, Seungkwan is against acting cute. He frequently attacks other when they do it, and he doesn’t want to be a hypocrite. It’s just, he can’t seem to help it around Vernon. He can feel it happening and he can’t stop it. Everyone’s called him out on it by now, the way he talks and acts around Vernon.

In his defense, Vernon has been visiting him at work. Not with his friends or anyone else, just him. It started a few days after everyone met; Vernon had walked in all casual with a brown bag and Seungcheol had fished Seungkwan out of the kitchen with an obnoxious smirk. “Your boyfriend’s here for you,” he said, nudging at Seungkwan’s side with his elbow as Seungkwan tried to push him off. 

“He’s not my _boyfriend_ , you’re so embarrassing,” Seungkwan grumbled, tossing off his apron and hurriedly shaking his hair out. “How do I look?” Seungcheol gave his thumbs up and shoved him out to where Vernon was waiting. “What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I brought sandwiches,” Vernon said and held up his brown bag for proof.

Seungkwan felt himself blush and tried to reign himself in. “Vernonie,” he cooed, “how sweet.” Vernon smiled and rolled his eyes, gestured for Seungkwan to follow him out to the alley.

They enjoyed a nice lunch together until Jihoon came out to remind Seungkwan that he had a _job_ to do, effectively popping the bubble they were living in. It was after Vernon left that the attack started. “Will you just confess already?” Jihoon pressed, kneading his knuckles into a slab of dough. “You two are sickening.”

“You really should, Seungkwan,” Soonyoung said, just as Seungkwan was about to scoff. Seokmin and Jeonghan were nodding in agreement.

“I wish you could see yourself around him, you’re all,” Chan clasped his hands together up near his face and fluttered his eyelashes, leaning into Seungcheol’s space and nuzzling his shoulder. Seungcheol laid his hand against his chest and swooned, and is that what people thought he and Vernon were like?

“R-respect your elders, Chan!” Seungkwan sputtered.

“Don’t be afraid of your feelings. I’m sure he likes you, too,” Jeonghan encouraged, patting Seungkwan on the back like a _baby_. Seungkwan had squirmed and spent the rest of the day pouting. It’s not like they’re _wrong_ , it’s just that he isn’t _ready_.

Those lunch dates become A Thing, though, and with them come the pushes to confess. Honestly, he can put up with the deal. Lunch with Vernon is the best part of Seungkwan’s day. Sometimes, Vernon will send a text with a picture of what he’s bringing or just a sweet message like ‘can’t wait to see you!’ and Seungkwan is smitten.

Although, Vernon doesn’t make very good food. The sandwiches are usually just a slice of bologna and that gross, plastic-y cheese. Some days he’ll bring ramen, but it’s always plain. And don’t even get Seungkwan started on the way Vernon _eats_. He inhales his food, and Seungkwan would worry that it’s his only meal of the day, but he knows for a fact Mingyu cooks everyone dinner at least three times a week when they’re not eating out.

Outside of the actual eating part of lunch, Seungkwan and Vernon use the time to catch up with one another. Vernon will fill Seungkwan on how much Joshua still cramps his style, how good Wonwoo is getting at Mandarin thanks to Jun, how much Mingyu has grown since last summer. Seungkwan will tell Vernon which movies Soonyoung has spoiled for him, what new song Jihoon is composing, how many pushups Seungcheol can do when he competes with Chan after hours. Even Joshua and Jeonghan have been hanging out together, sometimes with Jihoon and Seungcheol, too. Chan and Soonyoung get together with Jun and Minghao and do whatever dancers do together. Dance battle? They’re not sure, but they’re happy for them anyway.

One Saturday afternoon, Vernon suggests Seungkwan come over after work to hang out at his place. His friends are usually there anyway, so it’s weird that Seungkwan isn’t. He even says he’ll walk with Seungkwan. Maybe they’ll watch movies, but probably not. There are a lot of them and they’re sorta hard to settle down and keep quiet. They’ll probably just hang out, Vernon tells him, maybe he’ll ask Mingyu to bring food. Seungkwan has that part from "Like a Cat" stuck on repeat in his head, a loop of “I’m good, I’m hot, I’m fresh, I'm fly” making his brain short circuit. He must be nodding, though, because Vernon smiles and says ‘great’ in that super genuine way of his. Seungkwan doesn’t think he’s ever said the word ‘great’ in a non-sarcastic way in his life.

He definitely _wants_ to go, he tells himself, that’s why he said yes. He likes Vernon and he likes Vernon’s friends. He likes the inside of Vernon’s apartment, the tiny kitchen with its ancient gas stove, and the stack of albums on the Xbox. He wants to go hang out there after work, he does. It’s just, he’s suddenly kinda sweaty and kinda jittery. Vernon has to go now, he’s saying, something about going with Wonwoo and Joshua to the bookstore. Seungkwan tells him bye, see you later. _See you later._ It’s usually ‘see you tomorrow’ or just ‘thanks for the sandwich, it was totally delicious and not dry at all.’

Seungkwan recognizes this emotion as nerves. He’s just not sure why he’s nervous. He rushes into the kitchen after seeing Vernon off, that dumb thing they do where Vernon walks backwards and waves his whole way out of the restaurant. One day he’s gonna bust his ass, Seungkwan can feel it. “Guys,” he says a little too loud, and everyone startles. “Sorry. Guess what.” Jihoon grunts in response. Nice. “Vernon just invited me to his _place_. To _hang out_.”

No one says anything for a second. Seungkwan thinks he hears Soonyoung sniffle. “That’s cool,” Seokmin says, without much feeling. Soonyoung nods. Seungkwan surveys the room. Chan’s folding boxes diligently, silently. Jihoon and Soonyoung are topping pizzas with practiced ease. Seokmin is rolling dough. Where are Jeonghan and Seungcheol when he needs them?

“What do you mean _that’s cool_?” Seungkwan spits. “This is, like, a huge step. I’m kinda freaking out over here,” At this, Seokmin at least looks up.

“Will it just be you and Vernon?” he asks, hands still working.

“Well, no. His friends will be there, but…” he trails off. Jihoon sighs. “What?” Why aren’t they seeing this for the _huge_ deal that it is?

“Seungkwan,” Jihoon starts, and it’s clear he’s trying to be gentle. “You and Vernon have been dancing around each other for _weeks_. Frankly, it’s downright bewildering that you haven’t spent time together outside the vicinity of this restaurant yet. Has he even seen you out of your uniform?” Seungkwan has to think about that for a second, but no, he hasn’t. How is that possible? Jihoon places his hands on the make table and looks Seungkwan in the eye. “What are you afraid of?”

Well, that’s a stupid question. Seungkwan’s afraid of a lot of things. He’s afraid of being alone, being ignored, failure, spiders, being forced to eat vegetables, and having his heart brutally demolished by cute guys with dumb eyebrows and feeling like a total idiot because of it. And he’s not saying that’s what _will_ happen, but it’s a serious possibility. “I don’t know if he likes me back,” is what Seungkwan says.

There’s a long moment of laughter in the kitchen, but Seungkwan doesn’t like it. He crosses his arms and taps his foot, waiting for them to be done. “Jeonghan!” Jihoon shouts, loud and jarring. Jeonghan comes strolling in, looking confused. “Tell Seungkwan what Joshua told you.” Jihoon looks expectantly at Jeonghan, who pauses for a second before apparently realizing what Jihoon’s talking about.

“Vernon’s, like, in love with you,” he says. Like it’s so simple. What does Jeonghan know? Everyone’s in love with Jeonghan, so he probably thinks everyone is in love with everyone, or something. “And before you try to argue, Joshua told me so. His _roommate_ , and basically his brother.”

Seungkwan nods to himself, processing. “Get out.”

Jeonghan goes without trouble, just shrugs and leaves. Jihoon’s head hits the table.

\-----

The thing that gets Seungkwan through the rest of the day is knowing Vernon’s coming back at the end of his shift to take him away from these people. Strangely, he’s not nervous anymore. In fact, he’d rather be with Vernon, who he knows would never pressure him into confessing to him. Although, he could cut his friends a break. They’re not completely wrong, this might not be as huge a deal as Seungkwan originally thought. They’re gonna be surrounded by a bunch of their friends, a totally casual, platonic type of situation. Besides, he already said yes, so. It’d be rude to bail.

By the time Vernon shows up, Seungcheol’s already let Seungkwan go early, having heard the news and gotten all fatherly on him. Even Jeonghan had come out to help Seungkwan pick a shirt from Seokmin’s car. All the while, Seungkwan was trying with all his might to think about anything other than what Jeonghan told him in the kitchen. Jeonghan wasn’t catching on, though. He looked at Seungkwan as he shook out a mostly clean t shirt of Soonyoung’s and held it up to Seungkwan’s torso. “So about Vernon’s feelings for you,” he started, delicately. Seungkwan shook his head hard, ripping the shirt from Jeonghan’s hands and turning around mostly to change, but also to avoid looking at Jeonghan. “Just… don’t tell him I told you.” Seungkwan pulled off his tacky uniform shirt and tossed it behind him, hoping Jeonghan would react in time. “Look, we’re sorry for pushing you, Seungkwannie. You can go at your own pace.” Seungkwan tugged at the hem of Soonyoung’s shirt, resisting the urge to stretch it out. “Don’t be mad at us, come on,” Jeonghan said, the slightest hint of a whine slipping into his voice.

Seungkwan sighed for a long second, then faced Jeonghan again. “I’m not _mad_ ,” he said, “just… I’ve never liked someone this much before.” Part of him knew Jeonghan had definitely already known this, but it felt good to say anyway. He didn’t appreciate the unnecessary hug, though.

“Oh, Seungkwannie, that’s okay! It’s all a part of growing up,” he said, squeezing Seungkwan for all he was worth. “And if Vernon doesn’t like you back, then it’s his loss. But,” he pulled back, cupped Seungkwan’s face between his hands, “I don’t think that’s the case here.” Seungkwan groaned and swatted at his hands, trying to maintain some semblance of dignity. Sometimes Jeonghan really makes Seungkwan miss his mother.

Eventually, Seungkwan shook Jeonghan off, assuring him that he’s forgiven everyone and _especially_ him. When Vernon makes it to the restaurant, Seungkwan has been sitting in the sun for almost half an hour, legs splayed out into the sidewalk, ass numb from the curb. He can see Vernon from halfway down the block, but he keeps his eyes trained on his phone, aiming for an image of coolness. He’s not actually looking at anything, just checking his reflection. He’s thankful it’s not sweltering, otherwise he’d be shiny with sweat. His hair looks kinda lame, but there’s nothing he can do about that now.

Vernon’s eyes land on him when Seungkwan glances up, and he smiles big and bright and starts to jog over. Seungkwan pulls his knees up close to his chest and smiles back. Vernon slows to a walk in front of Seungkwan and reaches a hand out. Seungkwan takes it, allows himself to be pulled up, and doesn’t take his hand back for just a second. Wordlessly, Vernon slings an arm across Seungkwan’s shoulder and guides him back down the street. “You been waiting long?” he asks, looking Seungkwan straight in the eye in that intimidating way he does.

“Nah,” Seungkwan says, looking right back. “Just a minute.”

\-----

Standing outside Vernon’s door with Vernon by his side has Seungkwan reflecting on this whole journey a little. It’s noisy inside again, with the low hum of music and the sharp contrasts of everyone’s voices. Seungkwan is nervous again, too, and he still thinks Vernon is cute. So not a lot has changed, really.

This time, though, Vernon is reaching around his side to shove his key in and when the door swings open, everyone on the other side calls him by his name. “What’s up, man!” Joshua shouts, and yanks Seungkwan through the threshold before asking what he can get him. “You want water? A coke? Juice? We have a few different juices,” he rambles and Seungkwan just laughs and tells him water is fine. “Well, welcome to our humble abode, properly! It’s good to see you in your own clothes.”

“Yeah, you look nice,” Vernon speaks up from somewhere behind Seungkwan. Joshua holds a bottle of water out to Seungkwan.

“The shirt is, uh, Soonyoung’s,” he says, grabbing the bottle and taking a gulp.

“Oh,” he hears Vernon say. Wonwoo and Minghao are in the living room, playing a game on the Xbox halfheartedly. “Where are Mingyu and Jun?” Vernon asks them.

“Getting some leftovers to bring over. You good with that?” Wonwoo says, still facing the tv, but playing badly.

Vernon turns to Seungkwan. “You good with that?” Seungkwan nods, not sure what the alternative would be if he wasn’t good with it. The answer seems to satisfy Vernon, anyway, and they make their way to the couch to wait. Joshua takes the floor, sits cross legged and perfectly postured and Seungkwan thinks the guy is too good to be sitting on the floor, but the couch is pretty small so he doesn’t say anything.

Vernon doesn’t seem to have any qualms about it either. He sinks low into his seat, leaning just a bit towards Seungkwan so their arms are squished together. Seungkwan’s not really surprised. They’re both kind of floppy people in general, always bumping into each other and letting their arms brush when they walk and tossing hands over thighs when they sit. They’re the touchy type. Even now, Vernon’s wiggling his leg so their knees keep knocking.

Mingyu and Jun enter the apartment with a ruckus after a minute and Seungkwan considers moving over to make room for someone else to sit on the couch, but ultimately decides against it. He’s really comfortable and Vernon probably is, too, so he hopes they don’t ask him to. Minghao and Wonwoo have given up on their game; the menu screen is playing in an annoying loop of dramatic music, but the two of them are sprawled out on their backs and humming along.

It sounds like they’re heating food up in the microwave, but no one else is reacting, so Seungkwan doesn’t either. “What do you study at university, Seungkwan?” Joshua asks, breaking the lazy quiet. Seungkwan is about to answer, but-

“He’s undecided,” Vernon says without pause. “But he’s thinking of going into vocal performance. Or production, right?” He looks to Seungkwan, who’s caught off guard for a moment.

“Um, yeah. That’s right. Uh, what about you?”

“Oh, I study English lit,” Joshua says and he sounds proud.

“You should get him to read you some Shakespeare in English, Seungkwan,” Mingyu adds from the kitchen. “It’s wild.”

Joshua looks bashful, like this is something he hears a lot. “It’s why he’s swimming in chicks,” Minghao mumbles, seemingly half asleep. Wonwoo and Jun chuckle. Joshua extends his leg to kick at his shoulder. “What did you bring, Gyu?” Minghao yells.

“Come and see, it’s ready,” Mingyu yells back, sounding excited. Every moves to stand, Minghao pulling Wonwoo off the floor and Vernon pressing his weight onto Seungkwan’s thigh to push himself up. They move around the kitchen with ease, grabbing drinks and plates and dragging chairs around the table. Jun clears the magazines off the surface and lays out napkins for everyone. The food smells great, just this side of spicy. Seungkwan fumbles around himself, trying not to get in anyone’s way. Vernon reaches over Minghao on his tippy toes into the fridge for a soda, then glances back at Seungkwan to ask if he wants one. Seungkwan shakes his head and holds up his water bottle.

Vernon takes both their drinks and places them next to each other at the table, pulls out Seungkwan’s chair, and goes to get plates. Everyone settles in around the table, talking amongst themselves and clattering dishes and scooting chairs. Vernon smiles at him when he comes back and slides his plate over to him. Once everyone is seated, Mingyu comes around with a heaping dish of chicken stir fry, which looks amazing and has Seungkwan remembering that he hasn’t had anything to eat since the sandwich Vernon had brought him at lunch. He spoons each of them a moderately-sized serving, nodding with a shy smile when they praise him. “I know, I know,” he says, placing the dish on the counter by the sink. He’s playing at arrogance, but Seungkwan can see how happy he is with the compliments.

When Seungkwan takes his first bite, he feels a little like crying. He counts, and he hasn’t had a home cooked meal in almost a year. Sure, he and his roommates can make decent enough instant noodles, but they’re broke college students. They live off cereal and whatever they aren’t sick of from work yet. Vernon must notice Seungkwan’s emotional state, because he looks at him with concern, but Seungkwan waves him off. “This is really good, Mingyu. I haven’t had a meal like this in forever.”

Mingyu looks positively flattered. “You should come for dinner more often,” Vernon offers.

“Really?” Seungkwan asks, more to Mingyu than to Vernon, because Mingyu’s the one who has to do the cooking.

“For sure!” Mingyu says enthusiastically. Everyone is scarfing down their food hurriedly, and Seungkwan’s so hungry he starts, too. They eat in polite quiet for all of one minute before people start talking through their full mouths and over each other.

“Mingyu, move your fucking legs,” Minghao says, punctuating with a kick at Mingyu’s shin that has him yelping. Vernon’s eyes widen, and he shoves a too-large bite of chicken into his mouth.

“I can’t help it!” Mingyu whines, and it sounds like he’s flailing his legs about under the table. Vernon snorts. “Jerk.”

“Where are you from, Seungkwan?” Jun asks as Minghao’s voice raises, demeanor bright and Seungkwan wonders if he’s always been a little oblivious to danger.

“Um, I’m from Jeju, actually,” he answers, trying not to yell over Mingyu’s arguing. He’s pretty proud of where he’s from and he smiles when Jun tells him how cool it is. “Yeah, it’s a really nice place to-”

“Mingyu! Minghao!” Wonwoo snaps, deep voice sounding frighteningly authoritative, “stop shouting at each other.”

“We’re not shouting at each other,” Mingyu says. He sounds somewhere in between apologetic and cheeky. “We’re just… talking loudly at each other.”

Wonwoo sighs longsufferingly. “Talk quieter at each other, then.” Mingyu grins like he knows he’s not really in trouble and Minghao goes back to nagging at him, although in an aggressive whisper, but Mingyu is still smiling. Seungkwan isn’t really sure what to make of them, so he turns to Vernon, who just shrugs.

“So is it super fun working with Soonyoung and Chan or what?” Jun asks, catching Seungkwan off-guard.

“It’s definitely something,” Seungkwan replies, mind a little muddled by the conversations around him. Minghao’s moved on to telling Mingyu off about how he never picks up around their room, a concept Mingyu is renouncing with vigor, and Wonwoo is telling Joshua some long, convoluted joke that Seungkwan is only picking up in pieces.

“Ooh, have you ever spit in someone’s pizza before?” Mingyu interjects, cutting Minghao off in the middle of one of his points, but he doesn’t seem to mind.

“That’s gross, Mingyu,” Wonwoo groans.

“Um, no,” Seungkwan says, a little grossed out himself.

“Have you ever dropped something on the floor but served it anyway?” Mingyu prods on, either ignorant to or indulging in the way his friends are gagging at him.

“Definitely not!” Seungkwan feels almost insulted. “Although, this one time, we spilled our entire giant thing of sauce on the floor.”

Vernon laughs out loud. “No way.”

“Yes way. Soonyoung was carrying it into the kitchen and he tripped on Jeonghan’s foot. It went everywhere. And it was a rush, so we had to just keep cooking while we stood in it.” Everyone’s laughing now, probably because they’ve all met Soonyoung and can pretty easily visualize him tipping over a hundred-quart pot of pizza sauce onto his coworkers shoes. “And that’s not even the worst of it. We didn’t want Seungcheol to see, so we sent Chan to get the mop. When he brought it in from the back room, he couldn’t see this little pothole that’s in the floor, because, y’know, the sauce. So the mop bucket spilled and we had to cook for the next hour in dirty tomato soup.”

“What did Seungcheol do?” Joshua asks.

“Not much, teared up a little bit. Really, it was Jihoon we were all scared of. He didn’t talk to anyone for a whole day after that.”

They end up goading Seungkwan into telling them more stories about work, and he mostly avoids the ones in which he’s at fault. Seungkwan isn’t sure sure if his friends are just immune (or mean), but no one’s ever laughed at his jokes as much as Vernon does. And Vernon laughs with his whole body, clapping and curling into himself. It makes Seungkwan feel insanely good, so he tells them stories until all their plates are empty and someone really needs to start cleaning.

Seungkwan offers to wash the dishes, since he’s the youngest along with Vernon and it just seems right, seeing as he’s sort of mooching. Vernon rejects his offer, though, insisting that he do it all himself, on the grounds that Seungkwan’s his guest and that he “says so”. Joshua tells Seungkwan he’ll take him on a tour of the apartment and drags him away before he has time to say anything.

It seems a little unnecessary, the tour, since the apartment is tiny and Seungkwan’s seen most of it just by stepping inside the door. But Joshua seems really eager about it, so he relents. “This is the, uh, living space, you’ve seen it,” he starts, gesturing widely at the kitchen/dining room/living room. “Classic space, really, we’ve got the tv. The couch,” Mingyu waves his arms over the couch sarcastically, like he’s showing it off for an infomercial. “And that’s that, okay.”

He marches Seungkwan to a door by the far end of the living room, and opens it with a little too much force. “Here’s my room,” he says. He doesn’t even turn on the light before he shuts the door again and spins to lead Seungkwan to the other side of the room, by the kitchen. He opens what Seungkwan assumes in Vernon’s door and steps inside, then shuts the door behind Seungkwan. “So?” he deadpans. Seungkwan’s dizzy.

“Um, it’s nice?” What is he supposed to say?

“Seungkwan,” Joshua says, quieter. Seungkwan gulps. “Let’s sit.” They walk over to Vernon’s bed, and Seungkwan screams in his head. There’s nothing weirder than the knowledge that he’s sitting on his crush’s bed and having only Joshua for accompaniment. “I just wanted to talk to you about Vernon.”

That’s not comforting. “What about Vernon?” Seungkwan asks, playing dumb for now.

Joshua shakes his head. “I was wondering…” he trails off, pausing to play with his fingers. Seungkwan gets a sick feeling in his stomach and wonders if Joshua is about to confess to him or something. “Do you have feelings for him?”

Seungkwan leans slightly away from Joshua and crosses his arms. “Who wants to know?”

“I do. As his best friend.”

“For… what purpose?”

“For the purpose of protecting him from getting his feelings hurt,” Joshua says matter-of-factly, toeing on defensive. “I mean, I don’t want to pressure you into anything, but surely you know Vernon has feelings for you. I don’t want you to string him along and let him believe you feel the same if you don’t.”

Actually, Seungkwan _doesn’t_ know that Vernon has feelings for him. And he kinda wishes everyone would stop telling him what he wants to hear from Vernon himself. Although, he can respect what Joshua’s trying to do. It’s strange, really, to hear it from this side, when Seungkwan’s so sure he’s the one who’s going to get hurt. But he supposes he can tell Joshua the truth, if only for his comfort’s sake. “Yes, okay? Yes. I have feelings for Vernon.”

“That’s great!” Joshua exclaims, giving Seungkwan whiplash from the emotional 180. “Wow, you two are great together, you should tell him!”

Seungkwan shakes his head, unsure how to respond. It’s one thing to have his own friends telling him what to do, but Joshua? He barely knows this guy, and Seungkwan would appreciate it if he worried about his own friends, or his own love life, for that matter. Seungkwan wills himself to hold in his pettiness, that clawing urge to bring up Jeonghan just to see how Joshua reacts. He breathes deep and nods placatingly, ready to get out and away from Vernon’s room, which he can’t even properly admire in his irritation.

Vernon’s still doing dishes when Seungkwan heads to the kitchen. He’s elbow deep in the serving dish, scrubbing at the bottom with a sponge. He looks practiced at this. He’s humming to himself, lost in his own world while his friends make noise in the living room. Seungkwan almost feels bad to snap him out of it. “Vernon,” he says, tapping on his shoulder. Vernon jumps a bit, sending some suds into the air. “Sorry. I just, I think I’m gonna head out. It’s really late, and I don’t want Soonyoung and Seokmin to worry.”

“Oh?” Vernon hurries to fill the dish with water, rinsing his hands of soap. “Let me walk you home. I think this needs to, uh, soak, anyway.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want you walking back here alone.”

“Oh, Seungkwan. I assure you, I can take care of myself.” Vernon puffs out his chest and Seungkwan can’t help but laugh.

“I’m sure you can, Vernon. Look at those biceps.” He lifts Vernon’s arm by the wrist, inspecting.

“Hey!” he grumbles, pulling his arm back with a pout. “What do you suggest then?”

Seungkwan ponders this. He could ask one of the others to walk with them, so Vernon doesn’t have to walk back alone. He could call Seokmin to pick him up, so no one has to walk. Neither option sounds that appealing, as they both cut into any chance of Seungkwan spending time with Vernon alone. So what he says is, “Why don’t you just spend the night at mine?”

Vernon looks surprised, and Seungkwan is surprised too, honestly. But what’s the worst that can happen? Well, if Seungkwan thinks about it for more than a few seconds, he sees that there is a lot that can go wrong, but he chooses to live life looking at the positive. He’s bored with questioning himself at every turn, that’s not who he is. He’s someone who does what he wants and believes in himself. Maybe inviting his crush over for a slumber party is too trivial a thing to apply this philosophy to, but whatever. He wants to hang out with Vernon and this is a perfect way to do it.

As if Vernon can hear Seungkwan’s thoughts, he smiles and nods. “You know what, sure. Joshua!” Joshua whips his head around to see what Vernon’s yelling about. “I’m spending the night at Seungkwan’s.” He’s still grinning at Seungkwan like he’s just done something he’s really proud of, and Seungkwan isn’t sure what that’s all about, but he’s grinning back regardless. Vernon tells him to wait just a second so he can go grab his toothbrush and some clothes, and Seungkwan stands there feeling a little dumb and a little giddy, watching Vernon’s friends look at each other in a tense silence. Whatever.

Something changes that night, and Seungkwan can’t really explain it. They walk down the city street feeling light and warm, Vernon’s backpack bouncing a little with his steps. They joke and laugh and their hands brush so much that it gets annoying and Seungkwan just decides it’s stupid and grabs Vernon’s hand with his own and holds it the rest of the walk. Vernon doesn’t even mention it, only swings their hands dramatically and laughs loudly when Seungkwan whines about it.

“You know,” Vernon says conversationally about halfway to Seungkwan’s apartment. “We’ve known each other for almost two months now.”

“Really? It feels like a lot longer.”

“I know. This probably sounds dumb, but I feel like I’ve known you forever.”

Seungkwan doesn’t think that sounds dumb at all. He feels the same, like he and Vernon have grown up together or something. “You sap,” he says, poking at Vernon’s cheek and giggling when Vernon fails at fighting a smile. “I get what you mean, though.”

They make it to Seungkwan’s apartment in one piece around half past nine, which means Soonyoung and Seokmin should be back. Seungkwan is in a really good mood and doesn’t want to be badgered about this whole situation, so he stops outside the building and pulls his hand out of Vernon’s. Vernon looks at him in confusion, but Seungkwan’s too busy typing out a message to notice.

_do not say a single thing, not one, I stg._

He sends it to the group chat he has with his roommates and prays they read it before he gets inside. “You good?” Vernon asks after he’s shoved his phone back in his pocket and their hands back together.

“I’m great,” and he means it.

\-----

“Okay, okay,” Seungkwan wheezes, trying to keep his voice down, but laughing too hard to be very successful. “Seriously.” He shuts his eyes, because looking at Vernon right now is only making him laugh more. “What’s up with them? Are they all dating each other or what?”

Vernon chokes on a laugh and claps, head coming forward to rest on Seungkwan’s chest with the force of it. “I don’t-” he gasps, “I don’t _know_. No one does.” They keep laughing in that breathy way kids do when they’re up too late and trying not to get caught.

They’re talking about Vernon’s neighbors, for the record. And they _are_ up too late. It’s almost 2 a.m. on a Thursday and Seungkwan’s got work in the morning and this is the third time Vernon’s slept over this week. They’re sitting criss cross on Seungkwan’s bed, facing each other in the dark. It’s all very ridiculous and they’re punch drunk on it. “I hope they are,” Seungkwan sighs. “I hope they’re in love.”

Vernon rests a hand on Seungkwan’s hair and looks like he’s about to assure him that _of course they are_ , but what he says instead is, “Yesterday, I saw Mingyu sneeze into his hand and then go back to playing with Jun’s hair.”

Seungkwan sticks his tongue out in a dramatic impression of himself vomiting. “I hate you,” he groans, pushing at Vernon’s chest until he almost falls off the bed.

Vernon scrambles to grab at Seungkwan’s arms, but it’s not like Seungkwan would _really_ let him fall. It’s too late to be making that kind of noise. “It’s not _my_ fault Mingyu’s nasty!” He’s not wrong, it’s not his fault. Actually, spending the night with Vernon so much has taught Seungkwan that’s he’s really quite a clean person. And he always smells really nice, like fruit or something. Seungkwan thought it might be his body wash, but even when Vernon showers at Seungkwan’s, he smells like it. Maybe it’s his natural scent.

“It’s your fault I’ve been exposed to him,” Seungkwan jokes.

“Sorry, Seungkwannie, I’ll protect you better from here on out.”

Seungkwan rolls his eyes. “Let’s brush our teeth. I have work in,” he glances at the clock, “too soon.” They amble off the bed and tiptoe to the bathroom in between Seungkwan and Soonyoung’s bedrooms. Seungkwan puts it out of his mind for now that Vernon has a spare toothbrush here.

They pass the toothpaste in a comfortable silence and make faces at each other in the mirror while they brush. Vernon always does this thing when he’s done where he bares all his teeth and Seungkwan thinks he looks like a kid trying to be scary, or take a yearbook photo. Every time he does it, Seungkwan says “nice face” and every time, Vernon pouts and says, “This is how I know I did good,” which is outrageously cute.

Tonight is a pretty regular night for them, they know how this goes. They make their way to Seungkwan’s bed, and Seungkwan takes the side by the window, because Vernon hates how bright it gets in the morning and Seungkwan is the only one with enough of a grasp on reality that early to shut the curtains for him. Vernon falls asleep with his left foot dangling over the edge of the bed because he gets hot, but Seungkwan gets cold so he doesn’t want to take off any blankets.

Seungkwan always sleeps on his left side, facing Vernon, though he tries to fall asleep on his back. “To prevent wrinkles,” he says and Vernon just shakes his head. Coincidentally, Vernon sleeps on his right side, so in the morning Seungkwan has to flip over so as not to breathe into Vernon’s mouth. Or, he’ll inch forward enough to plop his cheek down on Vernon’s chest and that way, no one breathes into anyone’s mouth.

It’s as comfortable as can be now, a familiar routine. Seungkwan knows that when he wakes up, he’ll pad into the kitchen to put on the coffee, which will rouse Soonyoung, whose voice will wake Seokmin. Their conversation will eventually get so annoying to Vernon that he gets up, too, and he’ll finish off the last bit of coffee from Seungkwan’s mug that Seungkwan never does.

Seungkwan will make fun of Vernon’s bed head in his mind, and Vernon will catch him looking and run his fingers through it. Then, he’ll play with Seungkwan’s hands, or pull him into his lap, or hug him from behind while Seungkwan chats with his roommates. They’re used to it, too. Vernon is extra clingy in the morning, prone to draping himself across Seungkwan shamelessly, but Seungkwan doesn’t mind. Soonyoung will probably pour Vernon some juice, which they’ll need to pick up more of soon.

Seungkwan is lying next to Vernon, listening to him breathe, knowing all this and finding it hard not to notice his heart. Vernon feels so ingrained in his life now, and he fits in perfectly. Vernon is quiet when Seungkwan is loud, Vernon cheers Seungkwan up when he’s upset. Vernon balances him. Vernon lets Seungkwan lean against him when they’re all watching a sad movie together and doesn’t make fun of him when he cries. Vernon claps every time Seungkwan sings, except when it’s early. (Then, he’ll tell him he sounds like a cat having its tail pulled, but Seungkwan knows he doesn’t mean it.)

Seungkwan feels a surge of affection for Vernon, feels lucky to even _know_ him. He flips on his side and scoots up close, throws his arm over Vernon’s waist and presses a light kiss to the tip of his nose. It should be weird, he thinks, but it’s not at all. Vernon wrinkles up his face to disguise his grin. “What was that for?” he asks, voice a little unsteady.

“No reason.”

\-----

The thing about the morning shift at Pepe’s Pizza is that the only people to come in are hungover college kids. Seungkwan doesn’t usually mind, but this morning he’s bored. Seokmin and Soonyoung had gotten to sleep in since they won’t start until lunch, Seungcheol is in the kitchen with Jeonghan preparing ingredients, and Jihoon and Chan are shuffling around with rags, wiping down random surfaces in an attempt to look busy. This leaves Seungkwan sitting alone in a booth, one eye on the door and the other on the napkins he’s folding into triangles.

There is a customer, who Seungkwan is waiting on sparingly - one of the aforementioned hungover college kids. She’s got her head on the table currently, pizza pushed to the edge. Seungkwan wonders if she’s asleep, but it’s not really his business anyway. She probably deserves the rest.

Jeonghan comes strolling out of the kitchen sometime after Jihoon goes to lie down in a booth, shaking off a lonely Chan in favor of napping before the lunch rush. Jeonghan’s whistling conspicuously, which means he’s trying to be inconspicuous. He stops in his tracks in the center of the room. “Psst, guys,” he whispers loudly. Jihoon sits up slowly and Chan pokes his head out from behind the cash register. “Come _here_.”

They congregate lazily around Jeonghan, curious but cautious. Jeonghan errs on the side of dramatic and Seungkwan would know. “You _guys_ ,” he starts, leaning in close. “Seungcheol’s birthday is in a few days.” His eyes move frantically around their huddle. Jihoon scratches at the back of his head.

“Okay?”

“We have to throw a party for him! It’s the least we could do.”

“It’s not the _least_ we could do…” Chan says. Jeonghan narrows his eyes at him. “But we should do it,” he revises.

“What I’m thinking is we have a surprise party for him at someone’s place. Ooh!” Jeonghan points at the door and claps. “Vernon’s!”

Vernon seems a little confused about the four of them standing in the middle of the restaurant staring him down as he enters, furrowing his brows and looking like he wants to turn back around. He approaches the circle like a zookeeper approaches an angry gorilla. “What-”

“Vernon!” Jeonghan says, trying to keep his voice down. “I need your apartment.”

“Jeonghan…” Seungkwan warns, feeling sort of embarrassed. Jeonghan and Vernon don’t really know each other well enough for this.

“Um. Why?” Vernon says, looking worriedly between Seungkwan and Jeonghan.

“It’s for a party, nothing crazy. Really, just the…” he pauses to calculate in his head, “thirteen of us. For Seungcheollie’s birthday.”

Vernon pretends to think about it, but Seungkwan can tell he’s going to say yes. He’s too nice for his own good. “I’ll have to ask Joshua,” he says.

“Oh, I’ll take care of Joshua,” Jeonghan assures.

“Gross,” Seungkwan mutters under his breath. Before Jeonghan can wring his neck, he grabs Vernon’s wrist and pulls him away from the others. “What’s up? Why are you here so early?” He surveys Vernon and notices he’s not carrying anything. “And without food?”

“I have to go to Minghao and Jun’s dance practice in a couple hours to help them with some routine,” he takes a long breath, “but I was wondering if you’d maybe wanna go out now? To eat, I mean.” It all comes out in a rush and Seungkwan is too busy blushing to respond for a second. “My treat,” he adds, like Seungkwan needs convincing.

“Um, yeah. Yeah, let’s go out. To eat. It’s super boring here.” Seungkwan ignores Jeonghan’s sputtered protest.

“Okay,” Vernon smiles. “Let’s go.” As they leave, Seungkwan can hear Jihoon sigh as Jeonghan hands out assignments for the party.

“Don’t be a brat, Jihoon. And bring some tequila.” That can’t be a good sign, but Seungkwan elects to ignore it for now.

\-----

As it turns out, Seungkwan probably shouldn’t have ignored it. He doesn’t want to say that what’s happening right now is a _disaster_ , because it’s… probably not. Yet. Really, Seungkwan hopes he remembers it for a long time. It’s just more than he expected and he could’ve used more mental preparation.

Everything started out rather calmly, actually. Seungcheol had been thoroughly surprised, jumping and even tearing up a little when he saw everyone pop out from their hiding spots. Jeonghan had accepted his hug gratefully as the mastermind behind the celebration. They all had a good laugh about Seungcheol’s surprised face. Classic stuff.

Then, the lights were out. Seungkwan’s still not sure who did it, but there’s something about a party with the lights off that makes people feel a little too free, a little too daring. Joshua and Jeonghan had spent the day stringing up lights and Chan even brought a strobe, so things were quickly getting dangerous.

It was at this point that Mingyu held up what bottles he could fit in his hands for all to see, shouting “let’s party!” or something to that effect. Minghao had run over, determined to drink Mingyu under the table, which drew Soonyoung over. Drunk Soonyoung is something Seungkwan goes out of his way to avoid seeing, generally, but he supposed this was a party and he should have fun. Maybe that’s where the night really turned.

Soon enough, everyone had a cup in hand. Except Joshua and Chan, that is. Seungcheol had made Seungkwan and Jeonghan something fruity, to appeal to their tastes and general lightweightedness. It tasted great, so Seungkwan had a few more. In the recesses of his mind, he knew it was a mistake, but this was a _party_. Next to him, Vernon was drinking a rum and coke, which smelled pretty gross but Vernon seemed to enjoy it.

Someone turned on music, something heavy and upbeat that Seungkwan didn’t recognize but liked as background noise. Then, Jihoon and Seungcheol were doing shots, tossing them back in quick succession as everyone cheered around them.

“Go, birthday boy, _go_!” Jeonghan shouted, slapping Seungcheol on the back. Jihoon grimaced and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand before his third shot. They stopped after six, which seemed like a lot to Seungkwan. He and Vernon shared a look over the rims of their drinks, as if to say “they are so irresponsible.” They watched Mingyu and Minghao compete, but Mingyu took the first shot and got grossed out, so he quit.

It was pretty fun to just wander around with Vernon and watch everyone, and Seungkwan felt good. He felt tingly and giggly; he kept his arm linked with Vernon’s as they milled about, laughing at the way their friends deteriorated. Chan was the DD for the night and Joshua took over Jeonghan’s role of the mom friend, so Seungkwan wasn’t too concerned.

Jihoon had lingered in the kitchen with Soonyoung and Seokmin for a while. They got drunk pretty quickly, after a couple of mixed drinks made by Jihoon. The two of them were like themselves, but times one hundred. Seokmin was singing every other sentence and laughing at everything till he cried. Soonyoung spent the night swinging between moods. He would be laughing with Seokmin one minute and crying about Jihoon’s tiny hands the next. They were probably the most annoying.

Jihoon, on the other hand, transformed completely. He settled on the couch by Chan, serene smile on his face and a powerful concoction in his hand. He turned soft, patting Chan’s cheeks and muttering affectionate nicknames at him and anyone who talked to him for the rest of the night. At some point, Vernon and Seungkwan had visited him and he called Seungkwan _sweetcheeks_. It made Seungkwan blush and made Vernon laugh out loud, but Jihoon didn’t seem to think it out of character.

Seungkwan had gotten away from that situation pretty quickly and stumbled his way into Joshua’s room, where Seungcheol was arm wrestling with Minghao on his belly. Minghao wasn’t doing too hot, which had Jeonghan squealing with delight. Joshua waved meekly at Vernon and Seungkwan when he noticed them, looking resigned to his fate. “My money’s on you, Minghao,” Seungkwan said with a wink that made Vernon snort. Minghao scoffed and lost, yanking his hand back before Seungcheol could crush it in his victorious grip.

“Now you gotta do a shot!” Jeonghan slurred too loudly for their proximity. “Woo! Drink up baby boy,” he giggled, pushing the shot glass that Minghao poured out for himself toward his face. Seungkwan was surprised Minghao didn’t drop it and take a swing at Jeonghan, but he supposed anyone could be charmed. He took the shot without so much as a hiss, nodding at the others politely before standing and walking out of the room with perfect composure.

“He’s like a robot,” Seungkwan whispered to Vernon.

“Your turn, pretty boy!” Seungcheol hollered suddenly, pointing at Vernon with a grin. “You think you can beat me?”

“Yeah, you think you can take him?” Jeonghan taunted, to Seungkwan’s horror.

“Um, no?” Vernon said awkwardly. He glanced to Seungkwan for reassurance. Seungkwan considered helping him find a way out of this confrontation, but where’s the fun in that?

“Hell _yeah_ , he can take you! My Vernonie is the strongest boy in all of the land!” Seungkwan yelled, wagging his finger in Seungcheol’s face. “We’ll _both_ do shots if he loses.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea…” Joshua interjected.

“No, he’s right!” Vernon said, stepping forward with gusto. “Let’s go, Seungcheol,” he swung his arms around to stretch before kneeling and placing his elbow on the floor. Seungcheol looked at Jeonghan, then they both shrugged and he assumed the position. They looked dumb, with their butts in the air and their faces too close together, but Seungkwan was nothing if not supportive.

“You got this, Vernonie! I believe in you!” Jeonghan was cheering just as loudly as Seungkwan, and this was as much a competition between the two of them as it was for Seungcheol and Vernon. They clapped their hands together in a tight grip, locking eyes before Joshua counted them down. From the jump, Seungcheol had a leg up on Vernon, pushing his hand a mere inch from the floor before Vernon found it within himself to resist. Seungkwan whooped and applauded at Vernon’s moment of strength, but Seungcheol quickly overpowered him and was on his feet celebrating before Seungkwan or Vernon could react.

“Shots, shots, shots, shots, shots, shots!” Jeonghan chanted at them, shoving overfilled glasses into their hands one by one. They each took a breath and tipped the liquor into their mouths at the same time, sticking their tongues out in disgust when they were done. Jeonghan and Seungcheol cackled, poking at their tummies like embarrassing parents. They scurried out of the room feeling just a little tipsier than before.

Back in the living room, everyone was steadily approaching wasted while Chan watched on in passive annoyance. He was still on the couch, where Soonyoung and Seokmin were singing a duet into each of his ears. They were singing some trot song, which was contrasting harshly with the new Drake track that was pumping through the speakers. Jihoon was laughing hard, holding his stomach with one hand and pointing with the other at Chan’s pouting face.

Meanwhile, Wonwoo was watching in awe as Jun danced with a trance-like expression on his face. Mingyu was yanking on Minghao’s arm and whining about something. Minghao just stared blankly at the wall and ignored him. Seungkwan wasn’t sure how they’d all gotten so messed up so fast, but it was fun to watch. Though, watching Jeonghan grind on anyone who wouldn’t push him away wasn’t fun, but that was later.

It was around that point that Vernon and Seungkwan had taken to the kitchen to catch up with the others, mixing drinks in an inexperienced mashup of flavors. Seungkwan dumped what smelled like jet fuel into a cranberry and orange juice blend, which tasted great but made his head feel a little floaty. Vernon stuck to classics, like Jack and coke. He said it tasted like an old man drink, but Seungcheol was loving his, so he sucked it up.

It didn’t take too long for more of them to make their way onto the makeshift dance floor (the living room rug), and that’s where things got interesting. This is the part where Jeonghan started acting gross, backing up close against Seungcheol’s front. Seungkwan hid his face in Vernon’s shoulder, but he wasn’t doing much better with the situation. They focussed their attention on the weird mating ritual Soonyoung and Jihoon looked like they were doing, circling each other and dougieing. “You’re a great dancer, Jihoonie,” Soonyoung said before dropping it low. Everyone around them whistled.

“I know,” Jihoon winked, body rolled, then stumbled over Minghao’s foot with a laugh.

“Okay,” Joshua said softly, helping Jihoon off the floor and escorting him to the couch.

The music switched to something faster and wilder, and Minghao peeled off his cardigan, much to the delight of Mingyu and Jun. Seungkwan wasn’t sure what that meant, but he got caught up in their excitement and cheered along anyway. Soonyoung was jumping around in glee, gesturing for everyone to make room. They formed a semicircle around him as he rolled his neck and shoulders.

Vernon was nudging at Seungkwan, encouraging him to pay attention. Minghao put his arms out and shut his eyes for a moment, then tucked them to his sides and swung them back. Seungkwan wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t Minghao landing a perfect back tuck and proceeding to breakdance on the floor while they all lost their minds around him. Seungkwan had _watched_ him take shots. Vernon was clapping and laughing at Seungkwan’s reaction to Minghao’s expert headspin, but he couldn’t even pretend to be embarrassed.

Minghao raised to stand with a little spin and a cute peace sign by his face. Soonyoung practically tackled him, wrapped his skinny arms around his neck as Minghao smiled bashfully. After that, Seungkwan remembers “Bang Bang Bang” playing and he remembers dancing well enough to have Vernon impressed. More songs, more dancing, more drinks. More Jeonghan trying to twerk, more Soonyoung laugh-crying, more Jun slipping into Mandarin and making Minghao crack up. There was a moment of Wonwoo singing, which was great.

This all brings them to now, the not-yet-nightmare-but-probably-later moment that Seungcheol turns the music down and suggests with a twinkle in his eye that they all play truth or dare. Seungkwan still has the mental capacity to be suspicious. He knows his friends and he doesn’t necessarily trust them. However, this is Seungcheol’s birthday, and it’s probably like a rule or something to let him have what he wants.

They round up, some clumsier than others, around the living room. The sober ones take the couch, looking apprehensive. Seungkwan settles half on the floor and half on Vernon’s lap; his arm comes around Seungkwan’s middle to hold him in place. Jeonghan and Seungcheol look cozy too, but Jihoon is sort of acting as a buffer, laughing and flopping into everyone’s space.

Soonyoung looks a little too excited, bouncing in his seat. When everyone’s close enough to sitting, he claps his hands together. “I wanna start!” he shouts, grinning in the way that makes everyone want to trust him, but Seungkwan knows better. “Okay, okay. Jihoon. Truth or dare.”

“Dare,” Jihoon hiccups. He usually wouldn’t be so careless, but he’s also somehow got his shirt on backwards now, so.

“Give someone in this circle,” he starts giddily, “a lap dance. With aegyo!” he adds as an afterthought.

Seungcheol laughs loud while a few of the others look vaguely afraid. Jihoon just nods, determined. His eyes scan around the room, taking in the various expressions around him. Soonyoung is still enthusiastic, probably anticipating watching someone else get embarrassed. That is, until Jihoon’s eyes land on him. He freezes. Jihoon stands and walks over to him slowly while running a hand through his hair. It looks like he’s trying to be sexy, but he can’t quite walk in a straight line.

Wonwoo puts Rihanna’s “Work” on, smiling with wide, maybe terrified, eyes. Soonyoung is leaning back on his hands while Jihoon comes to a stop in front of his feet. He glances around the circle for help, but now they’re all hollering encouragements at Jihoon and Soonyoung knows he’s not getting out of this. Jihoon holds eye contact as he lowers himself shakily to his knees over Soonyoung’s extended legs.

Seungkwan feels awkward just watching this. He gets a hand around Vernon’s wrist, in case he needs something to cover his eyes. Jihoon starts swaying to the beat, and despite how wasted he is, he’s still got rhythm. Soonyoung is still, hands planted firmly behind his back. He visibly gulps when Jihoon places a hand on his shoulder.

No one is really sure how they should be reacting to all of this, until Jihoon remembers the second part of his dare and brings a little heart with his fingers up by his face and sings along in a high, cutesy voice. They all sigh in relief, laugh and cheer, and hope that weird atmosphere doesn’t return.

Jihoon keeps going until the song ends, but the aegyo makes it bearable. When it’s over, Soonyoung is red in the face and clearly altered in some significant way. Jihoon seems a little more sober, and he has to take a long breath before he says, “Okay. Um, Minghao. Truth or dare?”

Minghao picks dare, he seems like the type, and Jihoon dares him to walk on his hands. This, Seungkwan can get on board with. Minghao has yet to show any signs of intoxication all night despite keeping pace with the likes of Seungcheol. Beside him, Mingyu pulls on his hand, insisting that it’s “too _dangerous_ , Hao.” He shakes him off and holds up a hand when Joshua protests.

He flips gracefully onto his hands and proceeds to make his way from the living room to the kitchen and back without so much as a fumble while everyone watches in amazement. Jihoon seems disappointed, rudely enough.

After that, Minghao dares Seokmin to do the entire choreography for EXID’s “Up and Down” and Seungkwan nudges Vernon halfway through and tells him, “I can do it way better.” He’s mostly joking, but Vernon nods very seriously.

“I bet you can.”

Seungkwan looks back to the scene when everyone cheers for the end of Seokmin’s performance. Seungkwan claps along distractedly. He’s halfway between being very aware of how he’s leaning back onto Vernon and Vernon’s arm across his waist and their intertwined fingers and feeling like he’s floating on a disorienting light beam. Vernon isn’t much better, it seems. His head is lolling around a little and his reactions are a bit delayed.

Seokmin picks Seungcheol, and Seungcheol chooses dare. Seokmin dares him to do as many pushups as he can with Jeonghan on his back, and Seungcheol looks excited to try. Seungkwan can’t relate. Seungcheol is just extra competitive when he’s drunk, and it makes him overzealous when it comes to opportunities like this.

He assumes the position and Jeonghan happily takes a seat on Seungcheol’s back, wrapping around him like a koala and giggling. Seungcheol presses down with some effort as everyone counts aloud. He huffs out a breath after three that worries Seungkwan, but he recovers. He drops after ten, arms giving out under him and sending Jeonghan sprawling onto the floor. It’s ten more than Seungkwan could do, so he gives him his due props and Vernon does, too.

Seungcheol recovers after a brief rest on the floor, then gets back to his seat and looks for the next victim of the game. While he thinks, Soonyoung gets a bottle of tequila from the kitchen and cradles it in his lap, taking occasional sips straight from the bottle until Seokmin slaps at his hand and gestures for him to pass it around. Soonyoung hands him the bottle, and Seokmin takes a generous gulp before sending it along.

“Mm…” Seungcheol hums, serene smile on his face. “Seungkwannie,” he drones, eyeing him. “Truth or dare?”

The bottle reaches Mingyu, who takes a sloppy drink, then hands it to Wonwoo. Wonwoo passes it to Jun after wiping the rim with his shirt, shaking his head disapprovingly at a grinning Mingyu. “Truth,” Seungkwan says decisively. Next to him, Jun boos under his breath and knocks back a mouthful of tequila.

“Truth?” Seungcheol sounds unprepared, but it fades. He smirks knowingly at Seungkwan. “Who’s your favorite person here?” He looks so proud of himself.

Seungkwan scoffs. “I don’t have favorites,” he slurs.

Seungcheol and Jeonghan share a look and laugh. Seungcheol points at him with that dumb look in his eye. “Yeah you do, I know you do, Seungkwan!” He and Jeonghan are snickering like it’s some big inside joke Seungkwan should be in on. “Come on,” he urges when Seungkwan shakes his head.

“Yeah, come on, Seungkwannie!” Jeonghan adds, unhelpfully.

“What do you _want_ from me?” Seungkwan whines, tossing up the hand that’s not in Vernon’s.

“It’s Vernon!” Seungcheol says and everyone makes a noise of assent. Vernon’s been holding the tequila bottle by his side during all this, so Seungkwan grabs it and takes a long drink.

“No it’s not,” he argues halfheartedly after choking a little. Vernon snorts behind his back, but doesn’t say anything.

Seungcheol and Jeonghan roll their eyes and Seungkwan swears he sees Jeonghan look at Joshua like “can you believe this?” He shoves the bottle rather aggressively into Jihoon’s grabby hands.

Before Seungcheol can keep trying to squeeze a confession out of him, Seungkwan shouts “Okay, my turn!” He thinks about finally getting one of Vernon’s neighbors to explain the context of their relationship to him, but now that he’s been on the receiving end of that scrutiny, it feels wrong. He ends up daring Joshua to recite the American Pledge of Allegiance to them in English, which distracts them all.

The game sort of falls apart after that, maybe because Mingyu’s half asleep and sprawled out across his roommates’ indifferent laps, or maybe because Joshua’s dare is for all of them to drink a bottle of water. Either way, people start making arrangements to get home. Seungcheol and Jeonghan collect Jihoon to escort him to Chan’s car so they can all get to their apartments before it’s too late.

“Do you guys want a ride to your apartment?” Joshua asks Soonyoung and Seokmin.

“If it wouldn’t be too much trouble,” Seokmin says. “Seungkwan?” Seokmin glances his way, but Seungkwan is just _really_ comfortable where he is. He turns to face Vernon and they have a moment of silent conversation.

“Actually,” he says, “I’m just gonna stay here tonight.” Seungkwan can feel Vernon nod.

“Oh boy,” Soonyoung says suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows. Joshua corrals them and pushes them toward the door, sending an apologetic look back at Seungkwan that he waves off.

Minghao wakes Mingyu by rolling him off his legs. He looks hurt at first, but Minghao reaches down to cup his face and he stops pouting. Seungkwan watches as Wonwoo helps Mingyu up and keeps their hands linked, and then Jun pulls Minghao close to him with a hand on his hip. A couple of them wave, but mostly they leave without a goodbye. Seungkwan supposes that must be how it is when you can come and go as you please like they can. He still doesn’t fully understand them, but they’re cute to watch anyway.

“Thanks for letting me crash here,” Seungkwan yawns. Now that everyone’s gone, he realizes he’s really tired. “I bet Soonyoung and Seokmin aren’t done yet.”

“It’s no problem” Vernon says, pulling Seungkwan to his feet. “I wanted you to.” Seungkwan ignores the possible implications that could have as they walk hand-in-hand to Vernon’s bedroom. They slip under the covers straight away, too drunk and exhausted to do anything else. “Tonight was fun,” Vernon says once they’re lying down and facing each other. “Seungkwan.”

Something in Vernon’s voice captures Seungkwan’s full attention and he looks up to find Vernon’s eyes already on his. “Yeah?”

“I’m really, really glad we met.”

His voice is full of honesty, the honesty that draws Seungkwan to him. “Me too,” Seungkwan replies, feeling like they’re walking close to the edge of something, but not minding.

\-----

Seungkwan wakes up the next morning from the deepest sleep of his life with a rolling stomach and pounding head. He groans and brings a hand over his eyes, trying very hard not to move too much. His agony must wake Vernon, because soon enough, Vernon’s groaning, too. “The light is…” Seungkwan whispers, throat dry and raw.

“Burning,” Vernon finishes for him. “It’s so bright.” Seungkwan whimpers in agreement. They make a brief moment of eye contact and Seungkwan would laugh if he didn’t feel like a small toddler was jumping around on his skull. “You look like shit.”

“I never look like shit,” Seungkwan says, turning onto his back. “Speak for yourself.”

Vernon would normally laugh, Seungkwan knows, but given the circumstances he can accept Vernon’s sigh. “Let’s just go back to sleep.” Nothing’s ever sounded quite so appealing to Seungkwan as that, so he agrees and they fall silent.

When Seungkwan comes to again, the sun is coming in low through the blinds. His head feels lighter and he doesn’t think he’ll throw up if he moves, so he rolls onto his side. Vernon is awake, watching him. “Well, that’s creepy,” Seungkwan says, but he doesn’t really mean it.

Vernon just smiles, soft and sweet, and Seungkwan can feel himself smiling along. “I’ve been thinking,” Vernon says carefully.

“Don’t hurt yourself.”

“Shut up. I’ve been _thinking_ about last night and-”

“Did I do anything crazy?” Seungkwan feels the need to ask. He doesn’t remember everything just yet, and he’s not always sure about his drunk self’s ability to behave.

Vernon shakes his head. “Nothing crazy. But, last night Seungcheol asked you who your favorite was, and-”

“Oh, God,” Seungkwan remembers this, vaguely. He didn’t say Vernon, did he?

“Stop interrupting! You said you didn’t pick favorites,” Seungkwan sighs in relief. “But, I just wanted to tell you that, um. You’re my favorite. Just in case you were wondering.” Vernon’s voice goes soft at the end, but Seungkwan’s listening really hard. He feels his heart beat faster, something he’s just had to get used to knowing Vernon. He remembers something Jihoon said a while ago, “ _What are you afraid of?_ ” It seems incredibly relevant right now, as Seungkwan looks into the swollen eyes of this unbelievably kind, beautiful, wonderful boy he’s been enamored with for _months_ now, who is telling him this stupidly innocent little thing like it’s a secret and Seungkwan cannot believe himself.

What is he afraid of?

Vernon looks like he’s losing confidence quickly, and Seungkwan laughs. He can’t help it. “Uh,” Vernon’s face falls a bit, so Seungkwan reaches a hand out for his jaw. He smiles at Vernon’s dumb, shocked face. Vernon licks his lips, a nervous habit. And Seungkwan just goes for it. He shuts his eyes and leans forward until their lips are pressed together. At first, they’re not sure what to do. They stay frozen until Seungkwan decides, fuck it, he’s come this far, he might as well make it worth something.

He starts to press deeper, moving his lips slow and tentative against Vernon’s. His thumb strokes gently across Vernon’s jaw and Vernon responds brilliantly, softening under Seungkwan’s touch. His idle hand comes to rest on Seungkwan’s hip, gripping it and pulling him closer. They kiss like that for a minute, until the reality of the situation crashes down on Seungkwan’s consciousness and he can’t help but smile into it. They break apart, dazed and content.

Vernon is staring at him a little bashfully, biting his bottom lip. “Our breath is like… stale garbage,” Seungkwan says, and finally laughs hard. Vernon’s laughing, too, because this is ridiculous and sort of gross and they need to get out of bed. The clock on Vernon’s desk says it’s well past noon and Seungkwan feels greasy and thirsty.

“We should brush our teeth.”

“We should be boyfriends.”

“We definitely should.” They kiss again, but it only lasts a second before they break apart laughing, and Seungkwan doesn’t think he’ll ever get tired of this.

They do get up, eventually, and go about their usual morning routine. Joshua’s made food that they heat up and eat at the kitchen table with their dumb, love-drunk faces. Joshua hears them and comes out to check on them. “Are you two okay?” They nod, mouths full, but Joshua seems to get it. He gives them a special little look and leaves them alone again.

“We shouldn’t even tell them,” Seungkwan suggests. “We’d never live it down.”

Vernon agrees. “They’d brag for the rest of our lives.”

“Our friends are the _worst_ ,” Seungkwan grins. Vernon knows what he means.

\-----

It had been a cute idea and all, keeping it a secret. They made it a good eighteen hours, give or take. Seungkwan supposes subtlety just isn’t their strong suit. Vernon had visited him at work the next day and Seungkwan had to tell him that he didn’t know how, but all his friends knew. Maybe he’d let it slip accidentally or maybe they could just _smell_ it on him, he didn’t know. Seokmin and Soonyoung had leaped on him the minute he entered the apartment the night they got together, congratulating him and, of course, expecting thanks for their “help”.

It was hard to deny once they said it, his stupid face gave him away immediately. Once it was out in the open, though, he could admit that he was pretty excited, too. They squealed over the details for a minute and then celebrated with fried chicken.

It took approximately thirty seconds for the news to spread at work. Seungkwan had walked into the kitchen and everyone was _already_ staring at him, looking various degrees of smug. Jeonghan had been the first to break, trapping Seungkwan in a hug that Seungcheol, Chan, and Soonyoung joined in on. “I’m so glad you finally nutted up,” Jihoon said. Seungkwan just ignored him, because, well, he was pretty glad as well.

When Seungkwan told Vernon this, all he said was “Oh my God. Me too.”

“What?” 

Vernon shrugged and lowered his voice to a whisper. “What if Joshua told them all? He has a sixth sense about this kind of stuff.”

“Are you suggesting they all have a group chat? Without us?”

Vernon sighed. “If they didn’t before, they do now.”

“Snakes,” Seungkwan said, but he couldn’t really be mad. In fact, he was super happy. He was sitting on an uncomfortable curb in a dirty alley, sweaty and still a little hungover, eating a terrible sandwich made by his _boyfriend_ , and he was happy. Even his friends couldn’t ruin this, and he bet they wouldn’t even try.

Vernon stuck around until closing, hanging around with everyone in the kitchen and watching Seungkwan try to ignore him to serve customers. It was just really fun to have him around, to look at when someone was being rude, or to have someone supporting his disruptive singing. Everyone made gagging noises when they so much as smiled at each other, but whatever. Seungkwan knew they were happy for him.

Now, the last customer has been served, the cleaning is done, and everyone is tense, spread out among the freshly-swept floor. Seungkwan widens his stance a bit, fixes his grip on the back of the chair in front of him. He looks up at Vernon, who’s giving him a thumbs up. “You have to try, Jeonghan,” Seungcheol is saying.

“Or don’t,” Vernon interjects, “Seungkwan’s gonna beat you anyway.”

“Thanks, babe.” It feels so, so good to say.

“Yeah, yeah, loverboy. Just press the button.”

“Alright.” Seungkwan can’t help his smile. “Ready… set…” They share a quick look, then Seungkwan puts on his game face. “Go!”

**Author's Note:**

> this dumb little idea bun has been baking in my brain oven for a while now, hope you enjoyed it and thank you for reading! as always, any comments are loved, appreciated, and squealed-over <3  
> p.s. i made a twitter and tumblr! if you want, you can follow or talk to me on both @auntienamjoon ! (please do, i'm just shouting into the void)


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